Chronicles of Forn Gorek: Galactic Codex
by Mr.Deacon
Summary: A full codex dedicated to the species, cultures, places, objects, times, etc., related to the galaxy of Forn Gorek and its many satellite galaxies. Multicrossover. Ties in with Chronicles of Forn Gorek, a story that has yet to be posted.
1. Timeline

" _The discoveries made as a result of the Covenant War have prompted alterations to the timeline of galactic events, which have since become disjointed and strange. Thanks to the efforts of STG, we have managed to calculate a fairly accurate timeline of events up until our contact with the Ascendancy and, controversially, the Covenant..._ "

 **\- Valern F'ush'ita, Salarian Councilor. 2153.**

* * *

 ** _Forn Gorek Timeline_**

 **(subject to change)**

 **1,000,000,000 BCE** : In this estimated timeframe, a city-sized spacecraft belonging to a race of quadrupedal dog-like aliens crash lands on Malastare, a forested world rich with life, after sustaining heavy damage from what is believed to be weaponry from another vessel. The ship is carrying hordes of voracious, eusocial locust-like organisms that the dog-like beings had apparently been nurturing. The survivors of the crash construct a large colony around the ship, supposedly with the intent of revitalizing their civilization. For reasons unknown, this fails and the race disappears.

 **100,445 BCE** : Around this time, the Chozo are the dominant force in Forn Gorek. Their empire falls under attack by the Flood, who overwhelm the Chozo and withstand nearly all attempts at halting their advance. The Chozo eventually employ the Halo Array to destroy all sentient life capable of sustaining the Flood, thus causing the Flood to starve to death. This action defeats the Flood but wipes out the Chozo and all contemporary species in Forn Gorek, though ruins and constructs left by the Chozo remain, including an intact Dreadnought preserved on Janjur Qom, the San 'Shyuum homeworld; various Shield Worlds; and of course, the Halos themselves, many of which are carrying pockets of surviving Flood organisms kept alive in stasis.

 **97,227 BCE** : A failure in containment on Halo Installation 05 is ignored by the monitor 2401 Ancilla Iricia, who was most likely going rampant at this point. The containment failure allows a Flood infestation to occur in 3,000 years, which will then be placed under quarantine for the next 100,000 years.

 **68,000 BCE** : The Protheans are believed to have achieved spaceflight around this time, and are credited with being the ones responsible for figuring out how to apply Element Zero to technology. They use the Mass Relay network, an organized system of mass transit devices (something which is also attributed to the Protheans) to establish a galaxy-wide civilization with the Citadel space station as their capital. It is known that during their reign, they meddled in the development of various species, including but not limited to the Asari, Hanar, and Humans. Most notably, they protect the Asari from a race called the Oravores, who seek to harness both the Asari and their homeworld's resources. Aggression from the Oravores prompts the Protheans to attack the species, and in the ensuing war, the Oravores are defeated and devolved to a primitive society on their homeworld, Ruusan. At some point after, the Protheans encounter and wage war with a hostile race of machine intelligences that endanger their existence.

 **48,000 BCE** : The Prothean species vanishes from the known galaxy, seemingly without a trace. Only the Mass Relays, the Citadel, and various decrepit ruins remain of their civilization, and the reasoning behind their disappearance goes unanswered for many thousands of years.

 **25,000 BCE** : The Eredar of Argus are visited by a mysterious spacefaring civilization known only as the Old Ones. These beings gift the Eredar with advanced technology so advanced it borders on mysticism. This gift allows the Eredar to build up an immensely powerful interstellar empire that colonizes many worlds, but becomes corrupt under a brutal dictatorship led by the warlords Archimonde, Kil'jaeden, and Velen. In an undiscerned timeframe, Velen eventually grows weary of his cohorts' rule and leads a secessionist group known as the Draenei. Enraged at this perceived betrayal, the Eredar loyal to Archimonde and Kil'jaeden, later known as the Man'ari, pursue the Draenei across the galaxy. The Draenei hide among many worlds and explore much of the galaxy in their mission to find safe harbor, but their worlds are constantly obliterated by the pursuing Man'ari.

 **20,000 BCE** : The ancient Gand gradually build up a civilization. Within a few centuries, they become spacefaring but are heavily factionalized. Multiple pocket colonies are established and civil wars between colonies become renownedly frequent. This results in severe cultural and technological stagnation.

 **13,000 BCE** : The Turians of Palaven begin to develop civilization around this time.

 **8,500 BCE** : The earliest Chiss civilization emerges during this time.

 **6,000 BCE** : Seeking to escape the imminent explosion of their sun, an intelligent alien race constructs an AI-managed starship equipped with supercomputers containing a virtual world, into which some of one billion of their species transfer their consciousness. The starship begins a journey throughout the galaxy which lasts for the next 8,000 years.

 **5,000 BCE** : The Chiss homeworld of Csilla, once a warm and tropical paradise, becomes locked in an ice age with profound glaciation encompassing the entire world. Csilla becomes virtually inhospitable, and it is only by living underground that the Chiss manage to survive. These events cause genetic changes in the Chiss, notably in their skin tone and eyes. Within a few centuries, the Chiss have adapted remarkably well to the climate change and make use of Csilla's geothermal energy as a power source. Chiss civilization jumps ahead significantly, leading to the building of several populous cities amongst the glaciers.

 **2,996 BCE** : A Gand faction discovers Malastare and establishes a colony there. The Gand soon discover the ruins of the long extinct dog-like species' colony, which has since become infested with the locust-like organisms that came with the ship. After numerous conflicts with the creatures, they establish a vast combat ground around the native hive for Gand to hunt the species for sport. Over the millennia, the Gand develop a great, near-religious reverence for the creatures.

 **2,200 BCE** : After centuries of unity, the San 'Shyuum of Janjur Qom become divided into two groups, the Stoics who believe that Chozo relics were sacred and not to be altered; and the Reformists, who wish to more closely examine the artifacts and use them for their own purposes. This fundamental disagreement sparks the War of Wills.

 **2,100 BCE** : The century-long War of Wills comes to an end as one thousand Reformists enter the Chozo Dreadnought and flee Janjur Qom.

 **1,900 BCE** : Tuchanka, the Krogan homeworld, enters the nuclear age. In a global conflict, weapons of mass destruction are released, triggering a nuclear winter. In the resulting devastation, Krogan society devolves into a collection of warring clans.

 **1,800 BCE** : A supernova propels the Mu Relay, the only point of access to the remote Pangaea Expanse, out of position. Concealed somewhere in the dense nebula formed by the supernova, the relay's position is effectively lost.

 **938 BCE** : The San 'Shyuum first encounter the Sangheili who, like the Stoics, believe that Chozo relics are to be worshipped and not modified. This ideological difference results in the War of Beginnings, in which the Sangheili have a distinct advantage in infantry combat due to superior numbers and troop quality. However, in space combat, the San 'Shyuum have a great advantage because of their technological superiority.

 **876 BCE** : After decades of struggle, the Sangheili finally accept that they must adapt and study their Chozo relics or face defeat at the hands of the San 'Shyuum. The Sangheili warrior priests reluctantly begin using their relics to improve their warships, arms, and armor.

 **852 BCE** : The Sangheili and San 'Shyuum end their war, merging to form the Covenant. The Council of Concordance ratifies the Writ of Union, clearly defining the roles of the San 'Shyuum and the Sangheili as religious and military leaders, respectively.

 **784 BCE** : During one of the first Ages of Conversion, Covenant forces discover the planet Te and with it, the Lekgolo. They discover that many of the Lekgolo worm colonies have literally devoured Chozo artifacts and installations, while others eat everything except Chozo installations. The Lekgolo initially proved difficult to defeat because of their ability to combine into powerful gestalts like the Mgalekgolo. However, due in part to their superior technology, the Covenant are able to ally with and tame the useful Lekgolo. They exterminate the relic-destroying colonies in an event that will come to be known as the Taming of the Lekgolo. The compliant Lekgolo are incorporated into the Writ of Union as military shock troopers.

 **648 BCE** : Janjur Qom is supposedly destroyed by a natural stellar collapse and the Chozo Dreadnought is made into the centerpiece of the new space station that will serve as the Covenant's capital and the new San 'Shyuum homeworld, High Charity. It is unknown whether or not the descendants of the Reformists ever attempted to physically return to their homeworld after it was apparently destroyed. They are content to believe it was destroyed or let others believe so, and Janjur Qom is declared lost.

 **580 BCE** : After developing faster-than-light spacefaring capabilities based upon Prothean technology, the Asari begin to explore the Mass Relay network, and eventually discover the Citadel at the hub of many Mass Relays.

 **520 BCE** : The Salarians of Sur'Kesh achieve spaceflight themselves, eventually finding the Citadel as well and entering diplomatic relations with the Asari.

 **500 BCE** : The Citadel Council is formed between the Asari and Salarians. Soon after, first contact is made with the Volus, a diminutive high-pressure ammonia dwelling race native to Irune. The Volus become the first species to be granted an embassy on the Citadel and contribute greatly to the development of Citadel society by creating a unified galactic credit. They are not, however, offered spots on the Council itself, which becomes a sore point for the species. The Turian Unification Wars also occur during this time when colonies furthest from the Turian homeworld, Palaven, begin conflicting with one another. The Turian Hierarchy, the reigning Turian government of Palaven, initially refuses to get involved until very few colonies are left. The Hierarchy then finally intervenes, putting an end to the fighting and renewing the colonies' allegiance to Palaven.

 **480 BCE** : The Chiss finally manage to achieve spaceflight, solving the rising issue of overpopulation on Csilla, but lack the faster-than-light capabilities to leave their home system, Rcati.

 **454 BCE** : The Batarian Hegemony rises as the dominant government of the Batarian species. They unlock the secrets of Element Zero-based faster-than-light travel through deciphered texts within badly damaged Prothean ruins on Bira, the moon of the gas giant Harsa in their home system. The Batarians make contact with the Citadel Council, and a century after, they are granted an embassy.

 **211 BCE** : The Gand faction operating on the planet Kalee discovers the primitive Huk and enslaves them.

 **137 BCE** : The Elcor of Dekuuna just begin their first forays into space travel when the Asari discover them. With their help, the Elcor discover the closest Mass Relay and, within a single lifetime, establish a regular trade route with the Citadel. They quickly become one of the more prominent species in Citadel space, though they are forced to share an embassy with the Volus. Notably, Dekuuna is also the location of an incredibly ancient Chozo ruin. Having never encountered any Chozo technology before, the Citadel races are never able to access it, and the Elcor, who deem the ruins a great historical and cultural site, forbid most outside races from going near it.

 **32 BCE** : The Rachni, a species of highly intelligent hive-minded insects, are discovered when a Citadel expedition opens a dormant Mass Relay leading to their home system. The Rachni prove to be hostile and begin a war with the Citadel Council. Negotiation with the Rachni queens is impossible because they cannot be contacted in their underground nests on the toxic Rachni worlds.

 **84 CE** : While the Rachni Wars continue, the Salarians make first contact with and uplift the primitive Krogan, manipulating them into acting as soldiers for the Citadel Council. The Krogan prove able to survive the harsh environments of the Rachni worlds and pursue the invaders into their nests, systematically eradicating queens and eggs.

 **150 BCE** : Amidst the Rachni Wars, a joint-Asari/Salarian fleet scouting for Rachni activity finds a previously undiscovered spacefaring race near an inactive Mass Relay. Contact reveals that the race, the Hanar, is commemorating the relay as part of their strong religious views towards the Protheans. The Hanar are brought to the Citadel and initially react with hostility, believing that the idea of other races inhabiting the great station is a desecration of the Prothean legacy. After lengthy negotiations, the Hanar are eventually appeased somewhat and are granted an embassy on the Citadel.

 **300 CE** : The Rachni are declared extinct. In gratitude for their aid in the Rachni Wars, the Council rewards the Krogan with a new homeworld. Free of the harsh environment of Tuchanka, the Krogan population explodes and over time, they begin to conquer other worlds to house their growing population. This strains relations with the Council.

 **693 CE** : The Special Tactics and Reconnaissance arm (SpecTRe) is founded by the Citadel Council as an elite peacekeeping force. At the same time, freed slaves and freemen start a movement to emancipate other slaves in the Batarian Hegemony. The political movement is forced underground by the mainstream government and continues to grow and spread throughout Hegemony and Council space.

 **700 CE** : Krogan warlords leverage veterans of the Rachni Wars to annex territory from other races in Citadel space. Eventually, the Council demands withdrawal from the Asari colony of Lusia, but the Krogan refuse. A preemptive strike is made on Krogan infrastructures by the SpecTRes. The Krogan Rebellions begin. The Citadel Council makes first contact with the Turian Hierarchy around this time and persuades them to aid in the war. After the Krogan respond to the initial Turian offensive by devastating Turian colonies with weapons of mass destruction, the Turians vow to stop the Krogan from ever becoming a threat again. Sometime after the Turians join the galactic community, the Volus are accepted as a client race of the Hierarchy.

 **710 CE** : Realizing that the Krogan will never give in as long as they can replenish their fighters, the Turians unleash a Salarian-engineered sterility plague known as the genophage on the Krogan. The Krogan population starts its decline.

 **800 CE** : The Krogan Rebellions end, though scattered Krogan insurgent actions continue for decades. The Turians fill the military and peacekeeping niche left by the decimated Krogan. However, the actions of certain peoples are able to convince the Council to allow the Krogan to keep their embassy on the Citadel open. Bakara of Clan Urdnot is chosen to represent her people due to her popularity not only amongst her people, but the Council in general. The Citadel Conventions are drawn up in the wake of the conflict.

 **900 CE** : The Turians are granted a seat on the Citadel Council in recognition for their service in the Krogan Rebellions.

 **1112 CE** : The Covenant discovers the planet Palamok, and attempt to exploit its plasmic outer core. However, they find that the planet is inhabited by the Yanme'e, and incorporate them into the Covenant as a slave race.

 **1342 CE** : The Covenant discovers the Kig-Yar of Eayn. Although the Kig-Yar initially attempt to resist absorption into the alliance, they quickly recognize that they are facing a superior force and submit, taking on the role of explorers and traders (and often thieves and smugglers). The Kig-Yar are also motivated by the potential trade and wealth the Covenant can provide.

 **1400 CE** : Extensive and unchecked industrial expansion on the Drell homeworld of Rakhana begins taking a significant toll on the planet's environment.

 **1486 CE** : On their homeworld of Ruusan, the Oravores just begin to rediscover spaceflight when their planet suddenly suffers an apocalyptic mass extinction crisis when a neighboring planet in the system explodes, the shock shifting Ruusan's orbit and annihilating its ecosystem. Over the next few centuries, multiple pockets of Oravores fight for survival, and one particular group puts themselves in suspended animation with hopes of another culture discovering them.

 **1552 CE** : The San 'Shyuum begin developing technologies that increase the lifespans of the Covenant races.

 **1563 CE** : The Chiss begin their era of star travel beyond the Rcati system by launching automated drones with specialized beacons that lead to the creation of a network of navigational anchor points. The Chiss begin to expand into space, and their explorations yield several resource rich worlds. Also during this time, Jer'Jo Cam'Co forms the Chiss Expansionary Defense Force (CEDF) as the military branch of the Ascendancy.

 **1578 CE** : The Strategic Scientific Reserve (SSR) is founded as the intelligence service branch of the CEDF.

 **1600 CE** : Within a few decades, the government on Csilla controls 28 major colony worlds scattered across their space, united in a political federation known as the Chiss Ascendancy.

 **1622 CE** : The Chiss Ascendancy has its first documented encounter with the Syrn, a species of non-sapient marsupial mammals, on the jungle moon of Arthanoan. The creatures display an unusual ability to perceive emotions through microwave impulses, and respond to negative emotions through attempts at comfort. This gradually makes Syrns popular pets amongst the Chiss populace, and habitats for the creatures are constructed aboard large starships so that domesticated Syrns can provide relaxation and entertainment for the crew on long space journeys.

 **1691 CE** : The Chiss Ascendancy discovers slipspace, allowing for the development of the slipspace drive and faster-than-light travel.

 **1700 CE** : The first sightings of the Collectors are reported in the Terminus Systems. In Citadel space, the claims are dismissed as unsubstantiated rumors and tall tales.

 **1721 CE** : The SITH Project, a secret Chiss bio-engineering experiment, is green-lit. While it shows promise, the project is ultimately deemed a failure.

 **1762 CE** : The Chiss begin colonizing Hoth, a planet in the Tinoon Vinza system that will eventually become one of the Ascendancy's largest military research bases.

 **1770** **CE** : The Quarians of Rannoch become spacefaring after developing their own version of the slipspace drive using Chozo ruins located on the planet of Adas. Colonization of other worlds proves difficult due to the Quarians' weak immune systems.

 **1785 CE** : A Batarian fleet bombards the Salarian colony of Mannovai. The claims say that it was caused by a Batarian admiral turned pirate. Tensions begin to rise over the next two centuries as Batarian raids and government sponsored pirate attacks continue to grow on numerous worlds throughout Citadel space.

 **1880 CE** : Aria T'Loak arrives on Omega, a space station in the Terminus Systems regarded as the region's nominal capital. Aria is hired by the station's warlord as an enforcer and quickly becomes one of his most trusted lieutenants.

 **1891 CE** : The SITH Project is re-initiated by the SSR. The first successful batch of augmentees are code-named "MagnaGuards."

 **1892 CE** : After tens of thousands of years of being pursued by the Man'ari, the Draenei finally find safe haven on Draenor, a remote, peaceful world of ideal refuge. They live there peacefully for the next sixty years.

 **1895 CE** : The Geth, machines created by the Quarians as a source of cheap labor, become self-aware. Fearing a Geth uprising, the Quarians begin dismantling them. The Geth revolt against their Quarian masters. In the resulting conflict – known to the Geth as the Morning War – the Geth systematically drive the Quarians from their own worlds. The surviving Quarians are reduced to living as spacefaring nomads aboard the Migrant Fleet. Contrary to expectations, the Geth do not venture outside of the former Quarian systems to finish their creators, instead isolating themselves from the rest of the galaxy behind the Sea of Shadows.

 **1913 CE** : The Battle for Esan occurs when the Batarian Hegemony attempts to annex the independent Asari colony of Esan, also known as Lorek to the Batarians. The attempt fails to gain the planet for the Hegemony, with most of the invasion force annihilated or captured and thousands of civilians dead as a result. The Batarian embassy on the Citadel is closed as a result and the Citadel Council begins enforcing sanctions on the Hegemony that continue to grow over the next two centuries while building up their own military forces for the inevitable war between the two powers, though diplomatic contact between the two is maintained in the interest of peace.

 **1915 CE** : Batarian forces skirmish with the Council on the planet Enael, the first publicly known skirmish between actual Hegemony forces and Citadel Council forces. A short war between the Hegemony and the Citadel soon breaks out with both sides exhausted after a five year struggle. According to the treaty following the war's end, the Hegemony is forced to break off most of its alliances with the Terminus Systems and limit its expansion in the Attican Traverse. However, the Batarians are allowed to retain their government and hold their conquest of Esan. They slowly rebuild their strength, leading to a growing cold war between the Hegemony and the Citadel Council for the next few decades.

 **1928 CE** : First contact is made by the Chiss Ascendancy with the Gand when a single Gand huntsman, later found out to be from the hostile Gand colony of Rishi, stalks and kills members of a Chiss MagnaGuard unit on the jungle world of Dxun. The Chiss track the huntsman's flight telemetry to the colony of Malastare, where diplomatic contact is initiated. Despite considerable cultural and biological differences, relations between the Ascendancy and Malastare bloom significantly over the following decades.

 **1952 CE** : The War of Draenor occurs when Man'ari forces led by the crusader Talgath find Draenor and report its location to Archimonde. After confirming the presence of the Draenei, Archimonde launches a massive offensive against the planet. The brutal war is barely won in favor of the Draenei when the Draenei foal, Dutun, engages and kills Archimonde in combat. The Man'ari invasion force surrenders to the Draenei, who seize their fleets and weapons and hail Dutun as a hero. Meanwhile, Argus falls into chaos with the death of Archimonde and plans are made by Kil'jaeden to wipe them out once and for all.

 **1961 CE** : The Humans become spacefaring when Yuri Gagarin becomes the first Human to travel in space.

 **1980 CE** : Aria T'Loak assumes control of Omega after defeating the space station's previous warlord in single combat. She mockingly bestows the title "Patriarch" on the broken Krogan, and uses him as a reminder to her enemies of her power.

 **2006 CE** : The Hanar discover the Drell. With Rakhana severely depleted and no spaceflight capability, the Drell were poised for a massive population crash by 2025 CE. Agreeing to help, the Hanar mount a largescale rescue operation and evacuate approximately 375,000 Drell to their homeworld, Kahje, over the following decade. The remaining 11 billon Drell on Rakhana slowly perish, warring over the last reserves of food and water. The remaining Drell on Kahje form a compact with the Hanar and begin to prosper and multiply, but start to suffer Kepral's Syndrome due to the humid atmosphere of their new home.

 **2042 CE** : The Covenant discovers the Unggoy homeworld, Balaho. The Unggoy surrender almost immediately in the imposing presence of the Sangheili and are incorporated into the Covenant.

 **2047 CE** : A Chiss military vessel, the _Salliche_ , disappears without a trace while investigating a transmission of unknown origin in uncharted space.

 **2052 CE** : Arbiter Fal 'Chavamee reveals his beliefs about the Great Journey and is declared a heretic by the Hierarchs of the Covenant. Seeking to usurp his position, a rival challenges Fal to a duel with the Hierarchs' backing. Both duelists die of wounds they inflicted on each other and the Hierarchs proclaim the rank of Arbiter would henceforth be one without honor.

 **2062 CE** : Conflict brews between the Unggoy and the Kig-Yar when the overwhelming Unggoy population causes the relocation of thousands of Kig-Yar families, killing many of their eggs and forcing a rapid decline of the Kig-Yar birth rate. In an effort to exact revenge, the Kig-Yar poison the Unggoy's infusion resources to induce forced sterility on Unggoy males. After the Covenant Hierarchs fail to act, the Unggoy launch a violent rebellion against their Covenant masters. This conflict later goes on to be known as the Unggoy Rebellion, and ends only when Balaho is almost completely glassed by the Covenant. Despite the nature of the conflict, the Unggoy's actions impress the Sangheili, who start to train the Unggoy to become soldiers in the Covenant military, giving them better technology and access to weapons. The same year, the flight recorder from the _Salliche_ is found by the salvage vessel _Forn Dodonna_. They also pick up the unknown transmission as well, finding it to be a derelict Chozo spacecraft drifting in the orbit of a planetoid. The ship is contaminated with Flood biomass, and one of the crewmembers of the _Forn Dodonna_ is infected by it. He is rushed to the free port Calcoraan Station, where a Flood Infection Form is spawned from his infection, reproduces, and overruns the station. A few weeks later, a second ship, the _Jarrus_ , arrives at Calcoraan to collect the _Salliche_ 's flight recorder. Only one survivor reports back, claiming that the survivors had to destroy the station to keep the Flood from escaping. The truth behind the event, known as the Calcoraan Incident, is kept under wraps with only the higher-ups of the SSR knowing about it.

 **2063 CE** : The Batarian Hegemony discovers the Leviathan of Dis, a gigantic corpse of what is believed to be a genetically engineered starship. Its age is placed back at nearly a billion years old, though the Hegemony denies any such discovery and the Leviathan disappears within a year. The cold war between the Batarians and the Citadel Council begins to thaw with the Hegemony regaining its embassy by the end of the century.

 **2069 CE** : Armstrong Outpost at Shackleton Crater is formally founded as the first Human settlement on Luna, on the 100th anniversary of the first lunar landing.

 **2070 CE** : Human billionaire Victor Manswell, frustrated with the pace of official Human space exploration, begins funding his own private spaceflight expedition. That same year, the rise of a Jiralhanae named Maccabeus to the rank of High Chieftain of the Jiralhanae begins a new era where he uses his powers to slowly turn the Jiralhanae from a savage race into a civilized people. He does this by trying to restore the Jiralhanae to their previous technological level (which was lost after a devastating nuclear war between enemy nations) while also culturally changing the race to become more civilized and prevent the mistakes of the past from becoming reality once more. Five years after his rise to power, the Jiralhanae will have rediscovered radio and rocket science once more.

 **2075 CE** : The Manswell Expedition successfully launches from Earth en route to the Alpha Centauri system with 300 colonists aboard in cryogenic stasis. Communications with the vessel are lost soon after.

 **2088 CE** : Harvest has the highest agricultural productivity rate per capita of any Chiss colony. Harvest is the most productive planet in the Ascendancy, producing fruits and other crops.

 **2090 CE** : The Chiss Ascendancy encompasses more than 800 worlds throughout the Ettarue Arm of Forn Gorek (ranging from fairly well-tamed planetary strongholds to tiny hinterland settlements). Outward expansion continues and the Inner Colonies, colonies closest to Csilla, become a political and economic stronghold, though they rely heavily on raw materials supplied by the Outer Colonies, colonies farthest from Csilla. During this period, Hoth becomes the Ascendancy's primary naval yard and training academy. Hoth is a major producer of warships and colony vessels, as well as a training ground for covert operatives and Special Forces.

 **2091 CE** : The SITH Project is reinitiated and the planet Onyx is discovered.

 **2092 CE** : A very large rebellion occurs on the Chiss colony Far Isle in response to protest by the Outer Colonies in regard to rapid decrease in raw materials, with the Ascendancy unable to control it. A Code: Gorax is thus declared, proton bombardment being used to put down the rebellion. The planet is abandoned by the Ascendancy due to high levels of devastation and all contact is cut off from Far Isle. At the same time, the Covenant stumbles upon Doisac, the Jiralhanae homeworld. The Jiralhanae under Maccabeus are quickly forced into submission by the Covenant's superior forces, making them the final species absorbed into the alliance. Maccabeus uses his status to travel throughout Covenant space, learning more about the cultures and technologies of the Covenant and bringing this knowledge to Doisac to help his people. His reign unites the last rogue Jiralhanae tribes into a planetary confederacy that ushers in an age of prosperity for the formerly barbaric species.

 **2093 CE** : The Chiss Ascendancy makes first contact with the Quarians when the Migrant Fleet wanders into the Balmorra system. Negotiations go well at first, but soon degrade due to Quarian outrage of the Chiss' use of artificial intelligence. The two sides maintain a cold yet cordial relationship, and many Quarians on their pilgrimages find themselves under Chiss employ.

 **2094 CE** : The first rebel insurrection in the Anoat system begins. By the third month of the year, three Ascendancy destroyers confront the insurgent-controlled CEDF _Arigus_ in the 71 Bormea system at the culmination of what is later labeled the Arigus Incident. It is effectively labeled the beginning of the Insurrection.

 **2096 CE** : The Anoat Insurrection is defeated by Ascendancy forces at the cost of four destroyers. Still, this is considered a monumental victory for the rebels, as most of their forces were still active.

 **2101 CE** : The CEDF _Chaf Exalted_ and the Insurrection vessel _Tarnis Far Gone_ fight to a draw in the S-K system.

 **2102 CE** : Operation: Visionary takes place on Harvest. The operation involves the assassination of Dord'hesho'uri, the leader of the Secessionist Union by Baldarek. The CEDF _Chaf Exalted_ is damaged in the Skirmish at Sindelica with Insurrectionist forces, resulting in the deaths of 32 crewmembers and requiring her to be laid up in space dock for one month for repairs.

 **2103 CE** : The European Space Agency's Lowell City in Eos Chasma becomes the first permanent Human settlement on Mars.

 **2104 CE** : A battle takes place in the S-K system between the CEDF and the Insurrectionists.

 **2106 CE** : Project SITH, the original MagnaGuard Project – the first attempt by the CEDF to create and train teams of super-soldiers for covert military operations in the Outer Colonies – is deactivated. Though the MagnaGuards are effective, their abilities fall short of original expectations, and they are far too expensive to develop and field. The soldiers in the program are reassigned to various special operations units.

 **2117** : The MagnaGuard-II Program is created by renowned SSR scientist Sev'eere'nuruodo, who kidnaps 150 Chiss youths in an attempt to help stop the growing Insurrection. Flash clones are created that will replace the children but die under normal circumstances so that questions would not be asked.

 **2124 CE** : The Chiss discover Ruusan and the remnants of the Oravores civilization. After establishing a research outpost there, the Chiss soon uncover the stasis pods, but only one remains active. The occupant, an Oravores female named Kahranna Planore, is awakened and confirmed the last of her kind. She is integrated into the Ascendancy, later becoming a strategic operative for the SSR.

 **2125** **CE** : The Covenant ship _Rapid Conversion_ comes into contact with Harvest. In the days that follow, an attempt at first contact fails due to the actions of an overeager Unggoy and a Chiss who fired back in self-defense, resulting in the Covenant delegation attacking the Chiss. For the rest of the month, the Chiss on Harvest attempt to defend their homes before deciding to evacuate. Within three months, the majority of the Chiss population has been evacuated while those left behind continue to fight a hopeless battle to keep the Covenant occupied. The _Rapid_ _Conversion_ then proceeds to glass Harvest to destroy any remaining Chiss resistance. On High Charity, three San 'Shyuum use knowledge gained from multiple sources to overthrow the reigning Hierarchs. Their first use of their newfound power is to declare the Chiss to be unclean heretics that must be purged from the galaxy. The Intergalactic War begins. In response to the loss of contact with Harvest, the Ascendancy sends the CEDF _Arlan_ to investigate. The ship was able to send a single signal before being destroyed by the _Rapid Conversion_. The Ascendancy proceeds to send an armed battlegroup consisting of one destroyer and two light frigates in response. The battlegroup reaches Harvest and confronts a Covenant super-destroyer that was sent to guard the system. In a battle lasting forty-seven minutes, the super-destroyer is damaged but the two Ascendancy light frigates are destroyed. Only the destroyer is able to escape and warn the rest of the Chiss Ascendancy of the threat. The First Battle of Harvest ends in a decisive Covenant victory and the etnriety of the CEDF military is brought to full alert. That same year, the Citadel Council discovers the Yahg, an intelligent pre-spaceflight species, on the planet Parnack. Ambassadors representing the Citadel Council arrive on the planet and attempt to open diplomatic contact. After the ambassadors are killed by the predatory Yahg, the Council ceases all contact with the Yahg and declares Parnack off-limits.

 **2126 CE** : The Second Battle of Harvest begins when Vice Admiral Prard'ras'kleoni led CEDF Battle Group Harrik to defeat the Covenant super-destroyer in the system. The battle is a pyrrhic CEDF victory at the cost of 13 CEDF ships out of forty against one lone Covenant ship. This battle begins the overarching Harvest Campaign, which would last for the next five years. During this period, the Covenant would proceed to invade dozens of Chiss worlds and glass them while Vice Admiral Prard'ras'kleoni would lead CEDF forces in an attempt to defend the Outer Colonies. Most of the battles occurring during these years would end either in a decisive Covenant victory or a pyrrhic victory for the CEDF. Harvest would be invaded once more and fought over by both the Covenand and the Chiss Ascendancy constantly.

 **2128 CE** : The Humans of Earth discover a small cache of highly advanced Prothean technology hidden deep beneath the surface of Mars on the South Polar Region. Building on the remnants of this long extinct race, Humans quickly explore the science of Element Zero, leading to the development of faster-than-light travel and beginning detailed exploration of the Sol system.

 **2129 CE** : Following information from the translated data cache on Mars, Humans discover that Charon, the moon of the planetoid Pluto, is actually a massive piece of dormant Prothean technology, a Mass Relay, encased in ice. Once activated, a team of explorers is sent through the relay, and soon discover the Mass Relay network. The Systems Alliance charter is signed by the eighteen largest nations on Earth. The Alliance soon becomes the military and exploratory spearhead of Humanity.

 **2131 CE** : To defend its expanding territory, Humanity begins constructing a massive military fleet and space station at Arcturus, the nexus of several key Mass Relays, even though they have yet to encounter another intelligent spacefaring race. Biotic potential in Humans is also discovered during this time. Around the same time, the Third and Final Battle of Harvest (also known as the Liberation of Harvest) occurs. Admiral Prard'ras'kleoni leads a fleet including the CEDF _Spirit of Fire_ to help the CEDF _Prophecy_ defend Harvest from the attacking Covenant Fleet of Glorious Interdiction, led by Arbiter Ripa 'Moramee. The CEDF proceeds to defeat the Covenant forces and capture a Chozo site that had been excavated in the polar regions of the planet. The artifact points to another site on the planet Dantooine in the Dina system, forcing the _Spirit of Fire_ to leave Harvest. Upon arriving in the system, the _Spirit of Fire_ gets caught in the middle of a battle between two Covenant _CCS_ -class battlecruisers that had begun a ground invasion of Dantooine and the defending CEDF fleet consisting of CEDF _Garm Bel Eblis_ , CEDF _Endar Spire_ , CEDF _Champion of Iridonia_ , and CEDF _Veltraa_. The arrival of the _Spirit of Fire_ and its forces alongside the Dantooine Patrol and a number of MagnaGuards helps in the evacuation of Pirth City. A second Chozo site is excavated by the Covenant, but when driven from the site, Arbiter 'Moramee kidnaps Professor Visse'ituth'hliza and the _Spirit of Fire_ is forced to give chase to prevent Visse'ituth'hliza from giving out any information regarding the war effort. This is the last reported sighting of the _Spirit of Fire_ for the next ten years by the Chiss Ascendancy.

 **2132 CE** : The Delta Pavonis Foundation, a major consortium based on Earth, begins settlement of the Humans' first extra-solar colony world, the planet Demeter. Later that year, additional colonies are founded on Eden Prime and Terra Nova.

 **2135 CE** : The Systems Alliance occupies completed portions of Arcturus Station, intended to become the Alliance's headquarters.

 **2136 CE** : Arcturus Station is formally inaugurated.

 **2137 CE** : The Humans make violent first contact with the Citadel Council when the Turians observe Human explorers attempting to activate a dormant mass relay, a practice forbidden by galactic law after the Rachni Wars, and attack. Over the next three months, a brief but tense conflict known by Humans as the First Contact War and by Turians as the Relay 314 Incident ensues. The conflict culminates in the Turian siege and occupation of colony of Shanxi. A Human fleet is led into battle against Shanxi's occupiers one month later, catching the Turians by surprise and evicting them from the planet. The Council soon learns of these events and tries to send a diplomatic envoy to solve the issue, but the actions of a paranoid Human soldier lead to the death of the Asari diplomat. In retaliation, the entire Turian fleet is dispatched to the Sol system and decimates the majority of the Alliance fleet. The Systems Alliance is forced into a full surrender within a week.

 **2138 CE** : The Human Systems Alliance is conscripted into the Turian Hierarchy as a client race. This leads to great civil unrest and riots break out across Human worlds.

 **2141 CE** : As the Intergalactic War rages on, a Batarian scouting party discovers what is later discovered to be a Covenant warship in the Ismar Frontier. To the horror of the Batarians and, later, the Council, the ship is revealed to be significantly more advanced than the Batarian fleet combined and the Batarians are routed after trying to capture the vessel. In response to the incident, the Council dispatches one of its SpecTRes into the Ismar Frontier to investigate the ship's appearance...

* * *

 **The general physics, species, and lore of both _Halo_ and _Mass Effect_ have been blended here, as well as some _Star Wars_ lore. The basic premise is this: what would happen if instead of humans, the Chiss were the ancient enemies of the Forerunners who were granted the title of reclaimer prior to the Halo Array's activation? And when the Covenant War (here called the Intergalactic War) begins, how weirder would things be if the Citadel Council races got involved? What would happen?**

 **Much of this story is inspired by the story _Book One: Dawn of a New Age_ by DragonheartODST. Great story and author by the way, and I've been given their blessing to write this story. I decided that before jumping right into this story, though, that I'd like starting out this new little universe of mine with a series of codex entries. The actual story will be posted in the next month if readers express any interest. I realize this is a concept that has been repeated a number of times, but I will try to make sure that it is entertaining. Otherwise, I'll drop the idea like it never existed.**

 **Obviously, this fic is an AU with various changes, the most significant being:**

 **1\. The Chiss Ascendancy from _Star Wars_ has taken the place of the UNSC, and the humans of Halo entirely. Also featured are the Gand, an insect-like race also from _Star Wars_.**

 **2\. The various precursor civilizations actually have names, instead of monikers like forerunner or precursor, who are called Chozo and Inusannon, respectively. The names given are derived from other franchises, but other than that, the actual species are the same; Chozo are still the Halo Forerunners, and Inusannon the Precursors. For disclaimer reasons, the names Chozo and Inusannon come from _Metroid_ and _Mass Effect_ , respectively, and the races that those species names originated from do not exist here.**

 **3\. The Quarians have absolutely no ties with the Citadel or anything connected to the Mass Relays at all, and have technology and ancient history tied closely with the Forerunners. As a result, the Geth Uprising was an isolated incident in which only the Quarians were subjected to; the Citadel races have not made contact with the Quarians whatsoever, and in the place of the Morning War, that particular time period has the Council conflicting with a more ambitious Batarian Hegemony.**

 **3\. The Eredar of Blizzard's _Warcraft_ franchise are present. I will admit, that was a bold move. But I wanted to add an element to the universe that branched off from the other civilizations in significant ways. More on them later.**

 **4\. Humans do exist, but just the ones of the _Mass Effect_ universe. They are not reclaimers, have no ties to the Forerunners, and are not overtly important to the story. At least for the time being. Also, in this timeline, the First Contact War occurred much earlier. Thus, the Systems Alliance was not as advanced as they were in original canon when they met the Turians, and were easily curb-stomped and then inducted into the Hierarchy as a client race.**

 **5\. Forerunner Monitors have been heavily revamped. Instead of floating talking robotic eyeballs, they are cybernetic humanoid beings with mechanical endoskeletons and artificial nervous systems surrounded by a layer of living tissue (similar to the Terminator, but way more advanced). Outwardly, they resemble human women, but with varying skin tones and scar-like ridges on their faces. Where on their faces is indeterminable.**

 **6\. The name of the galaxy in which this is set, is Forn Gorek. The title originated from the Chiss and will be the name used throughout most of the story. The humans still call it the Milky Way, though that name will be rarely if ever used.**

 **Assuming feedback on the idea is positive, _Chronicles of Forn Gorek_ will be a multi-story saga portraying the Chiss' influence on galactic history, starting with the Intergalactic War and ending (maybe) with the Reaper invasion.**

 **The next few chapters will be analyses of the various galactic factions; Chiss Ascendancy, Citadel Council, Eredar, Covenant, etc. Not sure which I will start with. Maybe the Chiss. You can all offer your opinions.**

 **To end this author's note, I'd like to address anyone who is reading any of my other stories. All Tim Drake related fics are in the works, but there is no real time I have set of when I'll update them. There's no guarantee they'll even be completed anytime soon. The crossover story Out of the Realms, Into the Galaxy has been on the rocks for a while, and I am considering putting it up for adoption. Anyone interested in continuing themselves, feel free to message me. Thank you.**


	2. Chiss Ascendancy

" _Sometimes I wonder how things would have gone if our people hadn't encountered the Chiss all those years ago. Things certainly would have been different, and considerably less turbulent. Many crises would have been avoided, and lives could have been saved. So many people... I'm sorry, I… (break) I apologize for that. I suppose I should be a bit more optimistic. First contact with the Ascendancy did bring a number of positive plates to the table. If it weren't for them, we wouldn't have ever gotten our homeworld back or made the technological innovations we have today. I don't even want to know how bad we would have had it when the Reapers came..._ "

\- Shala'Raan vas Rannoch, Supreme Chancellor of Rannoch. 2221.

* * *

 **The Chiss Ascendancy**

The Chiss ( _En'tisan'sasi bah Csilla_ , translated from the official Chiss language of Cheunh "child of Csilla") are the newest sentient species of notable size to enter the galactic stage. A proud and highly intelligent race of bipedal mammals originating from the planet Csilla, the Chiss value a knack for strategy and subterfuge over brutal force.

Biologically, the Chiss are bipedal mammals best distinguished by their blue skin and glowing red eyes, which grow darker depending on the oxygen content of their surroundings. Their skin and eye coloration are a direct result of forced natural selection imposed upon their people as a result of a global ice age that struck their planet almost 5,000 years ago. It is unknown what the species looked like prior to this change, but it is believed that they may have been very similar in appearance to the Humans due to similarities in biology.

Csilla itself is a harsh frozen ocean of a world with standard gravity, a frigid climate, a diameter of 11,080 kilometers, three orbiting moons, and has a terrain featuring glaciers and caves. A number of notable fauna that the Chiss have exported to multiple colonies are native to Csilla, including but not limited to the ferocious Wampa ice creatures and the herd-based Tauntauns.

The estimated Chiss lifespan is around 150 years old, thanks in part to advances in medical technology. Childhoods for Chiss individuals are very short, as they reach sexual maturity at the age of 10, and after that, they do not display any significant signs of aging until they reach 70.

 **History and Politics**

 **Rise of the Ascendancy**

The Chiss are believed to have evolved from an ancient evolutionary genus that millions of years ago diverged from other Csillan-based mammalian primates, after the Chiss clade split from a lineage that the Wampas, a species of ferocious bipedal predators also native to Csilla (and the only other surviving family member of said lineage), also came from. As stated previously, in about 5,000 BCE, Csilla entered a global ice age that eradicated nearly all plant and animal life on the planet. The direct cause of this environmental catastrophe is unknown, but when it happened, glaciers soon covered the normally warm equatorial regions of the planet, while solid ice locked the poles in perpetual winter.

At the time, the Chiss had already entered into a sort of industrial age where considerable scientific advances were being made at a pace rarely seen in an organic species. This is due in large part of the Chiss' general lack of spiritual or religious beliefs; in return, there were very few inhibitions to technological and cultural ingenuities. In order to survive the change brought upon their homeworld, the Chiss built energy-efficient warrens beneath the ice, as close to the warmth of the inner planet as possible, with underground carriage travel routes to connect the various underground sections of Csilla. The iceways were bored through the bedrock of the planet, so that they were unaffected by the shifting ice found on the planet's surface.

It is known that the Chiss adapted well to their planet during its climatic change and began tapping into geothermal energy as a power source. This led to the building of several populous cities amongst the glaciers and the quick development a global government. Thus, the Chiss avoided the adolescence period common to developing worlds that saw nations compete with one another, along with adopting a planet-wide tongue, known as Cheunh.

Eventually, the Chiss finally entered a space age when scientists began developing automated drones which were launched into outer space with specialized beacons that led to the creation of a network of navigational anchor-points. As the Chiss expanded into space using these coordinates, their species as whole gradually fell under the auspices of the Ascendancy. The Chiss Ascendancy is a republican oligarchy that serves as the government and holdings of the entire Chiss species, operating out of Csilla and beyond. The Chiss are largely governed by an oligarchy of extended Ruling Families from House Palace, located in the city of Csaplar. Each clan with the families is headed by leaders known as Aristocra who wear particular colors to indicate their clan and family loyalties. Standard and day-to-day decisions are made by a democratically elected parliamentary body from each of the many colonies under Chiss control. Issues are siphoned up through the parliament to a cabinet of appointed governors, and then to the ruling families, where a decision made by the parliament and/or cabinet can be approved for action.

As the Chiss Ascendancy expanded into the stars, one particular soldier by the name of Jer'Jo Cam'Co, was responsible for the formation of the Chiss Expansionary Defense Force (CEDF) as the military, exploratory, and scientific agency of the Ascendancy. He proposed the creation of this group after explorations efforts yielded evidence of intelligent extraterrestrial life and with it, the potential of encountering a new breed of threats. Much of their expansion was governed by the need to gather resources without upsetting their homeworld's ecosystem. Though their territory later managed to suffice for their growing population, the Chiss continued to expand into space. This expansion was greatly improved with the creation of the Bosbit-Delemede Translight Engine, or "slipspace drive" for short, which sped up Chiss colonization significantly.

Within a few centuries, as much as 800 worlds had been settled by the Ascendancy, a record held over most sapient species in Forn Gorek. A milestone of these colonization efforts was the planet of Hoth, a world very similar to Csilla located in the Tinoon Vinza system that would become the Ascendancy's main military hub. First contact was also made by the Chiss with the Gand and the Quarians (and by extension, the Geth) during this time, with variable, yet overall peaceful, outcomes to both negotiations.

 **The Insurrection**

For a long while, the Ascendancy had been left in a state of general complacency as very few threats or conflicts were met. This changed, though, with the rise of a rebel movement known as the Insurrection. A few decades prior to the year 2094 CE, when the crisis first started, there were a number of tensions between the Inner Colonies, the worlds closest to Csilla; and the Outer Colonies, worlds further from the Ascendancy capital that harbored more resource rich worlds that the Inner Colonies had become heavily reliant upon. Breakaway movements were made by some of the Outer Colonies in response to what they saw as overbearing autocracy at the hands of the Ruling Families. These movements gradually escalated into full-scale violence that spread across Chiss-controlled space in only several years. As the conflict worsened, rebel military assaults were made on several Inner Colonies, including, to the shock of many, Hoth.

The Insurrection lasted for about thirty years, during which the rebel groups became incredibly adept in creating precise terrorist movements that the Ascendancy had difficulty detecting. Several naval battles took place, a significant one taking place right in orbit of Hoth, but the Ascendancy was able to keep the Insurrection from spreading too close to Csilla, which the rebels had intended to strike at some point.

 **The Intergalactic War**

Everything came to an abrupt end in 2125. In that year, contact with Harvest, an agricultural world in the Outer Colonies, was unexpectedly and abruptly lost. It was initially believed that rebels were responsible, but it soon became clear that this was nowhere near the case. After failing to re-establish contact, the Ascendancy sent a scout ship, the _Arlan_ , to investigate. Contact with the _Arlan_ was subsequently lost after the ship arrived at Harvest, plunging the Chiss into a deadly war with an alien hegemony known as the Covenant. Harvest was bombarded from orbit in a process which would come to be known as glassing, marking the beginning of the Intergalactic War, the largest and bloodiest multi-species conflict ever faced by the modern galactic civilizations. During the war, hundreds of Chiss colonies were destroyed and billions of civilians and military personnel were killed by the Covenant. The conflict would see the near-annihilation of the Outer Colonies by the mid-2130s.

The war took an abrupt and unexpected turn for the better in the case of the Chiss about twenty years into the conflict. Minor events resulted in first contact between the two warring factions with the Citadel Council in 2141. The _Spirit of Fire_ , a vessel that had gone missing ten years prior during a battle with Covenant forces, surfaced in the Ismar Frontier and was shortly thereafter detected by a Covenant battle fleet. It is simply by pure coincidence that a Batarian convoy happened to stumble upon the fleet and were subsequently obliterated in the following altercation.

What followed was an investigation by Council SpecTRe Terylene Wasava, who found the Spirit of Fire and organized negotiations between the Ascendancy and the Council. Within a month, the Council was drawn into the war on the side of the Chiss, changing the direction of the war and the political landscape of the galaxy forever…

 **Military**

The military of the Chiss Ascendancy consists of a well-trained and well-armed force which protect a number of advanced and orderly worlds within its sphere of influence. Chiss belief in rigid discipline is largely seen within their armed forces and they make use of superior technology when required in order to hold enemy forces at bay.

Despite their large fleets and efficient military, the Chiss were generally not violent. They prefer to extend themselves only from a defensive posture, although their exposure to the Covenant has caused the Chiss to rethink things. Much of the Chiss military is comprised of the Chiss Expansionary Defense Force (CEDF). Founded in 1563 CE by the heavily idealistic yet renowned soldier Jer'Jo Cam'Co, the CEDF is first and foremost a subordinate of the Ruling Families, but is professionally controlled by the Defense Hierarchy, which is ruled by a Security Council that convenes in the city of Ac'siel on Csilla. Standard CEDF officers wear black uniforms with patches colored to relate to their houses; members of the Defense Hierarchy wear all-white uniforms.

Within the CEDF are several branches, one being the CEDF Armed Forces. The Armed Forces encompass the CEDF Army, the CEDF Navy, and the CEDF Air Force. Chiss soldiers, regardless of branch, wear camouflaged color-shifting, fractal-pattern armor that allows them to sneak across battlefields with ease, and carry demolition satchels and _charric_ guns. The only thing differentiating them, are the emblems on their breastplates that signify which branch they fall under. The Army and Air Forces maintain garrisons on Ascendancy colonies, and are known to police any attempted rebel or pirate movements against colonies with extreme prejudice. The Navy houses the Chiss marine-based infantry and primary battle fleet, as well as the Strategic Scientific Reserve (SSR).

The SSR is the intelligence service of the CEDF, and one of the most elite intelligence groups in the galaxy, rivaled only by the Salarian STG. Overtly, the agency is merely the information gathering and analysis division of the CEDF. In reality, the operations of the SSR are far broader than simple intelligence gathering.

The SSR has become known for their preeminent role in the acquisition and leveraging of military intelligence. The agency is widely known for using subterfuge, deception, and manipulation in defense of the Ascendancy in order to accomplish its goals. Additionally, the SSR employs numerous special projects, the most prominent one, at least to the whole galaxy, being the MagnaGuards.

Believed to be the Ascendancy's greatest assets, MagnaGuards are members of a series of advanced projects designed to create physically, genetically, technologically, and mentally superior super soldiers as special fighting units. The first major effort to create augmented supersoldiers was the SITH Project, later retroactively dubbed "MagnaGuard-I", which used operatives drafted from the CEDF. The subsequent programs, MagnaGuard-II and MagnaGuard-III, were the brainchild of Sev'eere'nuruodo, a scientist employed in the SSR. They were highly successful, but also controversial because of Sev'eere'nuruodo's dubious ethics concerning the use children as candidates. The latest installment, MagnaGuard-IV, returned to the idea's roots by using consenting adult volunteers primarily drawn from the various Special Forces units of the CEDF. To the other races of Forn Gorek, the MagnaGuards are seen as the most efficient military/combat units ever conceived, and are both respected and feared. They are generally equipped with state of the art weaponry and equipment, the most iconic being their Powered Assault Armor.

 **Technology**

To the races of Citadel Space, Chiss are seen as something of an outlier in the galactic community. This is because the Chiss homeworld lies within the Ettarue Arm, a minor spiral arm of Forn Gorek untouched by the Mass Relay network. As a result of this, the Chiss were forced to develop faster-than-light travel through their own merits. About four-hundred years ago, the Chiss created the Bosbit-Delemede Translight Engine, a device which enabled FTL travel through slipspace transitioning. One of only three confirmed ways of FTL travel, slipspace involves the literal breaking of dimensional barriers to access a subdomain of alternate spacetime consisting of eleven non-visible infinitesimal dimensions used for faster-than-light travel. While efficient, slipspace has proven to be quite dangerous due to the possibilities of radiation poisoning, slipspace portals generated in atmospheres of planets causing intense gravity distortions, and even cases of entire ships disappearing vanishing from existence entirely with no possibility of recovery. Nonetheless, with this unique form of FTL, Chiss have colonized over 800 worlds, far outnumbering the amount of planets settled by all of the Citadel races combined.

Chiss structures are starkly angular, perhaps inspired by the icy geometries of Csilla's glacial landscape. This can also be seen in the warships of the CEDF fleet, which have very curved and fluid hull-lines. The Chiss naval vessels are usually comprised of titanium, and such protective armor is the standard of CEDF ships.

The most famous vessels of the CEDF fleet are the Star Destroyers. Kilometer-long warships, these triangular ships make up the bulk of the fleet and generally escort larger vessels such as carriers. The largest vessels in the CEDF fleet are said carriers. While possessing weapons of their own, their primary role is to deploy fighter craft such as the _Nssis_ -class Clawcraft, and may serve as flagships in fleet actions. A number of Chiss carrier types are known to exist, including but not limited to the _Sith_ -class. Frigates of various sizes and classes are used for escorting larger cruisers and carriers, as well as for independent patrol and scouting operations. They are roughly the same size as Star Destroyers, but are designed with less emphasis on firepower and armor over versatility.

Chiss weaponry is also something of an anomaly to most species. Unlike the Citadel or Covenant races, which utilize weaponry based on Element Zero and plasma, respectively, the Chiss make use of a unique type of energy weapon, the _charric_. A product of Chiss innovation, the _charric_ fires a lancing blue beam, sometimes described as a maser, which delivers thermal energy with a much greater kinetic punch than that of Eezo-based weapons. Low-power shots can administer disabling burns. The most common form of _charric_ is a hand-held carbine, but pistols are also known, and larger versions of the weapon are carried by some CEDF fighters, and include among the heavy weapons batteries of capital ships and bases.

In the years before the Intergalactic War, practically all Chiss ranged weapons were limited to _charric_ energy, but from studying both Covenant and Council technology, the Chiss have begun to adopt standard Eezo-based weaponry and learned how to apply Covenant plasma tech to their weapons. Though, this change was gradual and did not largely impact the war. The sole exception is probably Covenant energy shielding, which the Chiss immediately worked to understand and reverse engineer. By the 2130s, the Chiss had learned how to introduce energy shielding to both their vessels and ground troopers.

Chiss are also one of the few species in the galaxy to have attempted (and for the most part, mastered) artificial intelligence. Chiss AI constructs are divided into two groups: regular software-based AI and automated "droids".

The former are the most widely used in the Ascendancy, and alone are grouped into two categories: "smart AIs" and "dumb AIs". These labels are technically misleading, as both types are extremely intelligent, but dumb AIs are only capable of learning about subjects within their designated area of expertise, whereas smart AIs exhibit much more organic-like characteristics, such as emotions, creativity and intuition. While dumb AIs are pure software, smart AIs can only be created by scanning an organic brain and replicating the neural pattern to a digital storage system known as a Rezzoil matrix. However, after seven years of operation, the AI will descend to a terminal condition known as rampancy. Various solutions have been attempted to counter this issue, but none are known to have been effectively implemented.

Droids, on the other hand, are much simpler constructs. Unlike basic AI, which exist as programs represented by holographic avatars, droids are robotic drones that generally fall under the dumb AI category. Numerous models exist, each specified to a certain task. Some battle droids used for combat exist, but are nowadays rare as the Ascendancy relies mostly on Chiss combatants. Any droids seen today are but simple maintenance and utility drones that maintain and repair ships and structures.

 **Diplomatic Relations**

Since the first contact, the Chiss Ascendancy has encountered many galactic species. Mistrust is occasional and understandable, given the nature of the Chiss' history with the Covenant, but politically, the Ascendancy has found a very valuable ally in the galaxy's other sapient species. The Covenant races will not be mentioned; the war should say enough about where the Chiss stand on them.

The **GAND** were the very first intelligent civilization that the Chiss came into contact with. With how many factions of Gand exist, relations with the Chiss is unsurprisingly numerous. While intercommunication with xenophobic colonies like Kalee and Gargolyn are understandably toxic, relations between the Chiss and the colony of Malastare have always been close. Even in spite of their considerable biological and cultural differences, Malastare has more than two centuries of history with the Ascendancy with times of intermingling and cooperation going so deep that oftentimes, the occasional Gand family can be found integrated in Chiss society. Bottom line, there is no other race in the galaxy more entwined with Chiss activities than the Malastare Gand, and the Chiss will more than likely be able to turn to those particular Gand if they are ever in need of any aid.

The Ascendancy's greatest Council allies are, surprisingly, the **SALARIANS**. Nearly on par in terms of intelligence gathering capabilities and scientific achievement, the Salarians and Chiss tend to agree on many matters. However, their relationship is not without its flaws. Always needing to be at the prime of technological development, the Salarians have tried multiple times to acquire technological information from the Ascendancy, in particular, information pertaining to the slipspace drive. While this is typical of Salarians, the Ascendancy is not amused by this at all and has made this opinion known.

Initially, the **ASARI** had a rather lukewarm view towards the Chiss. Their strong military doctrine and willingness to use weapons of mass destruction led many Asari to see Chiss as being rather barbaric. There is also the matter of the Chiss' discovery of slipspace through their own merits and their technological development surpassing the Asari by four-hundred years being a great blow to their racial pride. Further complicating the issue is the Chiss expressing the logical absurdity of the Asari's biology. Many wild theories have been suggested, the most widely believed one being that the Asari were some genetically engineered offshoot of a race of similar biological makeup (like the Humans or even the Chiss themselves) spawned by the experiments of another spacefaring culture, possibly the Protheans. This theory is widely hated by the Asari, though it is credible, given how there is minimal fossil record of the ASari on Thessia that date back earlier than 50,000 years. The start of the Intergalactic War, however, quickly pushed all of those issues aside. While ever so conservative, Asari convivial attitude towards the galaxy has been shaken as a result of the Intergalactic War, and the ubiquitous Asari have suffered a great many tragedies; as the most widespread Citadel race, countless Asari perished by the millions for every Citadel world that fell victim to the Covenant armada. For now, the Asari are the Chiss' allies, though what will happen between the two in the future has yet to be seen.

The Chiss Ascendancy is on good terms with the **TURIANS** , as both have very sizeable and formidable militaries that worked together on countless occasions throughout the Intergalactic War. The Chiss Expansionary Defense Force is one of the largest known fleets in the galaxy, which the Turians are known to both respect and fear. They also have a mutually intense dislike for the Covenant; during the initial Council attacks against the Covenant Empire, the Turians often bore the front of the assault and their continuous struggle only strengthened their bond with the Ascendancy.

The **KROGAN** have no unified government, but after the Citadel Council declared war on the Covenant in 2141, the Krogan became invaluable assets on the field. Their warrior spirit and efficiency in warfare has earned them the respect of the Chiss, many comparing them to the MagnaGuard super-soldiers.

The Chiss Ascendancy has a long history of mixed interactions with the **QUARIANS** , and most of those interactions have been less then friendly. This is due to the Ascendancy's use of artificial intelligences. However, their dislike of AI's is vastly overshadowed by their hatred of the Covenant. In 2145, a group of Chiss were brought to the Migrant Fleet for protection against a pursuing Covenant force. Refusing to hand over the Chiss to the Covenant, the Migrant Fleet was subsequently attacked and hundreds of ships were destroyed. They managed to drive the Covenant away in the end, but this incident had cemented the Quarians' desire to bring the Covenant down at all cost.

On a normal occasion, the **BATARIANS** would take the appearance of a new spacefaring race as an opportunity to send slaver ships and pirate groups to raid a colony, to test the new race's defenses, and introduce a new species into their slave caste system. However, times have changed. The Batarian Hegemony resides mostly within the lawless Terminus Systems, which are less militarily defended by the Citadel Council and thus suffered the brunt of the Covenant attacks during the Intergalactic War. In 2152, the Covenant began a campaign against the Batarian Hegemony in order to conquer their home planet, Khar'shan, as its location provided a great strategic position from which the Covenant could easily formulate attacks on both the Chiss and the Council. Khar'shan and every other habitable world in the Kite's Nest star cluster were lost, and the Batarian Hegemony is now on the verge of collapse. As such, the Batarians are more interested in self-preservation than potentially starting a war with a first-rate galactic power that has, as of yet, done nothing to wrong them. Chiss, in turn, are disgusted by the Batarians' continued practice of slavery, but see fit to leave them be in light of their predicament.

For the **ELCOR** , this piece is rather interesting. Relations between the Chiss Ascendancy and Courts of Dekuuna are very warm, as the Chiss utilize resources that Elcor space is rich with, such as titanium and platinum. The Elcor economy has bloomed greatly from the trade, and is expected to enter a new Golden Age. There is also something of a kinship between the two species that cannot be entirely explained. Many Chiss and Elcor have expressed some strange desire for friendship, something akin to reconnecting with an old friend.

As client species of the Turian Hierarchy, the **VOLUS** and the **HUMANS** tend to agree with them on many subjects. As such, due to good Turian relations with the Chiss Ascendancy, interactions by Volus and Humans with Chiss have proven to be beneficial on all sides. The Volus are amazed by the unique technologies that the Ascendancy has developed and seek to emulate it. And with the Volus having the second largest economy in Citadel Space behind the Asari, Chiss have benefitted greatly from Volus financial support and resource exchange. Humans, meanwhile, are more complicated. The Human Systems Alliance, which is essentially an extension of the Turian Hierarchy, is respected by the Chiss for their combat prowess, and the Humans respect the Chiss for a variety of other reasons, such as their technology, discipline, fleets, and experience. However, the Alliance is also a bit put off by how the Chiss dismiss their accomplishments; Humans have always been rather bold and headstrong, believing themselves ready for anything the galaxy has to throw at them. The Chiss are not impressed by this attitude, and actually support their clientele status in the Turian Hierarchy, a status that the Systems Alliance has never been overtly happy with.

The Chiss and **HANAR** have no real political relations, as neither side has much of anything which interests the other. The only exception would probably be their mutual disdain for the Covenant; the Covenant religion greatly conflicts with the Illuminated Primacy's own religious ideals regarding the Protheans, and as such, the Hanar see the Covenant as an affront to their own religion. This has been shown to unnerve many Chiss who see similarities between Hanar and Covenant religious zeal, but other than that, they seem to get on well.

Like their Hanar counterparts, the **DRELL** have had limited involvement in Citadel-Chiss transactions. In fact, most of the Chiss race isn't even aware of the Drell due to the rarity of the species ever leaving the Hanar homeworld. However, Drell assassins employed under the Compact have proven to be invaluable in military operations, and the SSR enjoys using expendable assassins.

The **EREDAR** are such a new element to the galaxy that relations between them and the Chiss (or any species for that matter) are extremely minimal. The Draenei are at least on good terms with the Chiss thanks to the camaraderie formed by the war hero known as Dutun with various individuals in the Intergalactic War. It is unknown what the Man'ari of Argus feel towards the Chiss, but if what has been said of them by the Draenei is to be believed, it is most likely not congenial.

There has been no formal contact between the Chiss Ascendancy and the **GETH**. If history is anything to go by, the Ascendancy is extremely divided on whether or not to even approach the machines. As a species that has spent much of its history working alongside artificial intelligences, many Chiss condemn the actions that the Quarians took in regards to the Geth's gradual rise of self-awareness. In a time of galactic war, however, any issues regarding the Geth must be put aside.

The Chiss see the **VORCHA** as the rest of the galaxy do: annoying and dangerously violent pests. Scientists are, however, intrigued by the biology of the Vorcha, making them a recurring object of interest for xenobiologists.

* * *

 **And the first faction explored, the Chiss Ascendancy. Much of the information I implemented comes from their actual culture and military in Star Wars canon, with a few tweaks I added. If there is anything I didn't add that you would like to know about, go ahead and inform me of what. I'd like to thank my good friend, SpawnX66, for his help with this. Thanks a lot bro.**

 **Other factions I intend to describe include the Covenant, Citadel Council, Quarians, Geth, Eredar, Gand, hell even the Flood. The Citadel races I am unsure of whether or not to a whole chapter dedicated to all the species associated with them, or to do individual chapters for each species.** **The** **Quarians and Geth are already separate from them because in this universe, they were never associated with the Citadel and are thus an independent faction just like the Chiss.**

 **Review and have a nice day.**


	3. The Gand

" _The Gand are... well, it's difficult to say sometimes. Arthropods, in the biological sense, but insects? I couldn't say. They are definitely not like common insectoid species we've seen like say the Rachni or the Yanme'e. Like the Krogan and the Sangheili, they're a warrior society, but they don't not praise their skills or accomplishments, and they are difficult to surprise. They have the instincts of prey, yet are predators—it is strange. It's almost like someone blended the most basic traits of some of the galaxy's most infamous races together, but added a high degree of civility to the mix._ "

\- Dr. Rina T'Hulas, Asari xenoarcheologist. 2155.

* * *

 **The Gand**

The Gand ( _Ren'musi vumihn_ , translated from Cheunh as "huntsman's journey") are a keen-eyed and sturdy species of insectoids. They are short, stocky creatures that differ considerably from other insectoid life forms in the galaxy in that they have bipedal, anthropoid physiques. They have three fingers on each hand, each ending in curved talon-like claws.

Their bodies are covered in a chitinous exoskeleton that allows the Gand to shrug off injuries that would cripple most species. They also have considerable regenerative abilities; there have been documented cases of Gand losing entire limbs, only to grow them back in just under a few days. Gand possess compound eyes with a visual range including the ultraviolet spectrum and night vision. However, they are unable to perceive color when in complete darkness. These eyes are shielded by a keratin substance that protects them from airborne debris, such as that present in a sandstorm.

Several physical varieties of the species exist, differing from one another in the structure of the head and the texture and color of the exoskeleton, but the species is usually divided into two main subspecies: those with lungs and those without. Gand with such organs are adapted to their homeworld's atmosphere, but like Unggoy, require specialized breathing gear if they want to leave their homes to manage potentially poisonous offworld gas mixtures. Gand without lungs, however, do not respire and were immune to poisonous gases; thus they could venture offworld without worry of suffocation. Since the grand diaspora from their home planet, this offshoot has become the most common thanks to natural selection.

There is very little sexual dimorphism between male and female Gand, sans the fact that female Gand have a slightly higher vocal range than males. They reproduce sexually, but unlike most insects, they are ovoviviparous. While their young have no placental connection with the mother, their eggs remain inside her body until they hatch and are birthed live. In a trait that is shared with most insects, Gand molt as they age.

 **History and Politics**

 **Early History**

To the surprise of many, Gand spaceflight history actually goes back quite far, predating the formation of the Covenant Empire by almost 20,000 years.

The Gand share their name with their homeworld, which is located far beyond the explored regions of the Ettarue Arm and thus beyond the reach of the Mass Relays and along the periphery of what had once been the Chozo (or the Forerunners, as the Covenant species seem adamant to make everyone remember) civilization. Thus, the Gand evolved without any interference from precursor civilizations.

The planet of Gand boasts an atmosphere comprised of ammonia, which makes it potentially lethal to oxygen-breathers. The Gand species thrived in this environment and developed sophisticated societies, but were far from being a united people.

The Gand were, and always have been, a highly factionalized people. When they were confined to their homeworld, a number of pocket colonies covered the surface, separated by kilometers of thick mists. As a result, these colonies have very little contact with one another and developed differing cultures and ideologies ranging from meritocratic democracies to totalitarian monarchies. Whenever the chance came that contact between colonies _was_ made, it usually led to conflict.

 **The Hygrolas Diaspora**

A few centuries after the colonies were established, one colony, known as Hygrolas, began looking to the stars for a way to escape Gand so they could avoid what they perceived as an inevitable global war between the planet's most powerful colonies. Hygrolas was a community that had for a long time preferred knowledge and advancement over conflict, and thus they most likely would have been destroyed or enslaved by one of the more militarily powerful colonies had said conflict occurred.

While sufficiently advanced at the time, the Gand lacked any real form of spaceflight capability or even FTL. Some satellites had been sent out in the decades prior that revealed a number of life-bearing planets that would prove beneficial to the Gand, but the only hurdle was the lack of method to get to them.

This is where the Gand began to experiment. Scientists at Hygrolas used blueprints for weapons of mass destruction that had been conceived in case of attack by the other colonies, and reconfigured one of the blueprints into a sort of "space-trebuchet". In an incredibly long process that required an unbelievably high amount of resources, Hygrolas created a series of high-velocity electromagnetic propulsion arrays that would launch gigantic ships (arks for lack of better term) in the direction of the charted planets, one ship per world. It was an incredibly outlandish and agreeably suicidal plan, but the Gand at the time didn't seem to care.

These arks were self-sustaining and carried about 5,000 colonists each. A total of seven arks were launched offworld over the course of several years, as it took the Gand considerable time and effort to calculate the precise moments to launch the arks along a path that would keep them from colliding with other celestial bodies.

Hygrolas' efforts were a success as all of their people left Gand safely. It is unclear what became of the Gand who remained on their homeworld, as no contact with it was ever made afterward by the migrants and its location is virtually unknown to the other galactic factions.

 **The Colonies**

While seven arks were launched, two were destroyed en route and one veered off course from its intended destination and has not been seen or heard from since. The remaining four safely made it to the respective worlds.

None of these colonies had any immediate contact with each other, but each had access to stores of advanced technologies on the arks, which allowed them to advance for several generations. But because of the differing environments and conditions that the different Gand had found themselves in, they began developing separate cultures and civilizations with differing ideologies. Ironically, the ancient factionalization that occurred on their homeworld repeated itself on a much wider, galactic scale.

Over the next several thousand years, the following colonies were established:

Gargolyn

The planet of Gargolyn was the fourth planet in a tertiary star system that was the closest of the seven mapped systems to the Gand homeworld. As a result, the ark that was sent there arrived in a shorter time span than the others, only a little over two centuries. The planet itself is known to be one big desert, with very little flora but a large amount of fauna that have adapted to its scorching conditions. When the ark landed there, the new inhabitants stripped it of essential materials in an attempt to find refuge in their new surroundings. The Gand worked to survive in their new world, establishing an outpost that would eventually become Anchorhead, the capital of the entire Gargolyn Gand faction.

Sixty years after landfall, the advent of new generation spacecrafts expanded upon through further study of the ark allowed Gargolyn to develop interstellar travel and colonize two more planets in the system. As new colonies were formed, a mining and manufacturing boom took Gargolyn by storm. Dozens of small family-run guilds scrambled to claim as much land as possible, and soon hundreds of refineries, factories, and mining facilities sprouted up on Gargolyn. Over time, the larger guilds used a variety of shady tactics to eliminate competition until the Gargolyn Mining Coalition came to dominate the planet's economic activities, gradually gaining political influence over the planet as well. Over time, however, the Coalition became increasingly shady and corrupt.

Malastare

This is the most famous Gand faction in Forn Gorek, and the one that interacts most with the galaxy's other alien civilizations. In 2,996 BCE, the Malastare ark finally made planet-side and was met with a tropical, arboreal world lush with animal life and vegetation. The earliest actions taken by the colonists was to send out findsmen to scout out their new home, and faced off against a large variety of ferocious predators such as the horned, mammalian buhlags; the kril'dor, hulking bipedal reptiles capable of camouflage; and the caederi, subterranean worm-like creatures that ambushed prey from underneath the ground. Rather than be deterred by this harsh flora, the Gand were overjoyed at what they perceived as worthy sport and immediately began developing an outpost. The first Gand young were born within only a month.

An undeterminable amount of time later, the Gand made a very significant discovery. On the furthest edges of Malastare's easternmost continent, Gand findsmen discovered a colony predating an incredibly ancient organic species that was gradually built around an enormous derelict spacecraft. The colony is theorized to be over one-billion years old, but the ship that the colony is built around is estimated to be far older than that, making it the oldest artificial construct in the known galaxy. The beings who constructed both the colony and the ship had been long extinct when the Gand discovered the ruins, though from fossilized remains of said beings, it is known that they were canid in shape with quadrupedal stances. Their heads, however, were more amphibious in appearance with large, bulbous eyes reminiscent of the Salarians. It is unclear as to why they perished, but one thing is for sure that they were brilliant. The technology comprising both the ship and the colony is very odd; instead of being mostly technological in composition, the vessel's structure seemed more organic in appearance. It was implied by observations made by xenoarchaeologist Girso'opoto'liska that the ship was _grown_ biologically rather than built through mechanical means. This implies that these aliens were quite adept in biotechnology. Virtually nothing is known about the nature and history these quadruped aliens, but the circumstances of their crashing on Malastare are more obvious. The derelict shows signs of structural damage brought on by some sort of high-caliber weapon which more than likely caused it to crash on the planet.

While the Gand were in awe of the structure, that is not what caught their immediate attention. Infesting the colony are a species of large insects, roughly eight meters in length, capable of flight and adept in working in large groups. These creatures are not native to Malastare, and actually came to the planet with the derelict, implying that the quadruped builders had been breeding them. Physically, these creatures both physically and behaviorally resemble locusts, a tiny species of swarming insects native to the Human homeworld of Earth. However, they are much more aggressive and will attack almost any living thing on sight, usually without provocation. When the Gand first encountered these life forms, they were almost immediately taken by their aggression, natural resiliency and lethalness, and tendency to adapt to threats, and gradually developed a sort of quasi-religious reverence for the creatures. Over the years since discovering the ruins, the Gand of Malastare have constructed a sort of hunting ground through the ruins where Gand would venture in to hunt the insect-like creatures, which the Gand have since dubbed the "hard meat", for sport. In fact, any Malastare Gand who is training to become a findsman is required to go through rite of passage by hunting and killing a specific amount of hard meat.

The time it took for the Gand on Malastare to achieve space travel and begin colonizing other nearby worlds was much faster than that of the other three colonies. This was largely due to both the fact that the technology aboard the ark was largely intact and was not as quickly stripped for resources than the others colonies were, and technology reverse engineered from the quadrupedal aliens' ship and colony allowed the Gand to advance their own tech quite significantly. The technology used by the Malastare Gand is a unique mixture of both their own technology and that of the quadrupeds, and other species are very interested in studying it if given the chance.

Kalee

Kalee, like Malastare, is covered in tropical-looking foliage and beaches, but its landscapes were also largely covered in moss-covered canyons and beaches. In the year 521 BCE, the Gand ark arrived on Kalee and were immediately besieged by problems. Landfall was not easy and the ark was largely totaled in the crash, and a large portion of the colonists aboard perished. The survivors had very little to work with after that and more or less found themselves devolved to a primitive state comparable to that of the Krogan following the nuclear devastation of Tuchanka. Kalee's ecosystem was very deadly, and this had a very profound effect on the Gand's psychology. The Kalee Gand developed a war-like outlook, and whenever advanced in technology were made, it was most often in weaponry.

Circa 211 BCE, the Gand had long since redeveloped air travel and began exploring the other continents and landmasses of Kalee, leading to the development of various cities and outposts. They were quite surprised when they discovered an actual sapient species had already inhabited the planet without them ever realizing it. Called the Huk, these praying mantis-like beings were a primitive, pre-spaceflight people with a tribal culture. Very spiritual in nature, the Huk were polytheistic and capable warriors. The Gand, having long since abandoned a number of ethics, saw in the Huk potential war beasts and soldiers. With their more advanced technology, the Gand moved in on the unsuspecting Huk and quickly and brutally enslaved them. Even today, the Huk are under the brutal authority of the Gand, treated as little more than war beasts and pets.

Ruan

The ark that was launched to the planet Ruan was actually the last of the seven arks to leave the Gand homeworld, carrying most of the scientific staff responsible for the constructing the project. Unlike most of the planets charted for the diaspora, Ruan was not by any means a prosperous world. While it did support an atmosphere suitable life and had some degree of flora and fauna, it was a hot, inhospitable world comprising rocky landscapes, jagged mountain ranges, and violent gusts of gravity-induced catabatic winds capable of reaching up to one hundred and fifty miles per hour. The planet's close proximity to its sun resulted in it being afflicted by powerful solar flares quite frequently.

The reasoning behind the planet's colonization, though, was because the Gand sought to make use out of the planet's large abundance of mineral resources. The Gand thus saw great potential in the planet for a mining colony, and upon arrival, the Gand did just that. The colony of Burnin Konn served as the primary command center for a series of mining outposts built within deep crags containing ore-rich deposits. As their operations spread across the planet, the Gand of Ruan quickly adopted a method of fair and democratic governance, and in a relatively short timespan, they spread to other worlds and developed a prosperous, self-supporting economy.

To differentiate themselves from each other, Gand from different colonies usually wear different colors sporting unique emblems representing their respective home.

 **Reestablishing Contact**

After the four colonies managed to reestablish interstellar travel, it only seemed like a matter of time before they would make contact again. The first instance was between Gargolyn and Kalee, the latter of which had only just barely begun making plans to colonize other celestial bodies in their system when the former tracked them down using navigational data from the arks. Initial contact was not friendly due to the differing psychologies between both factions. Whenever conflict broke out, Gargolyn had the advantage of advanced technology while Kalee had the advantage of more adept ground combat, and the situation would go unsolved for a number of years until about 1050 CE, when Malastare entered the scene.

Upon formal contact, the people of Malastare were absolutely disgusted by Gargolyn and Kalee. They detested the latter for their barbaric practices and enslavement of the Huk, and interactions with Gargolyn started off decently, until Malastare came to realize that Gargolyn had begun to intentionally steal mining operations from locations under Malastare's control. These increased tensions eventually led to full-scale conflict, conflict that Malastare had greater advantages in thanks to their blend of technology and fierce fighting spirit. Fearing the possibility of defeat, the Gargolyn Mining Corporation opened up contact with Kalee once again with a proposition for an alliance. They managed to win Kalee's trust by providing them with Rishi, a tranquil, paradise of a world that proved an appropriate departure from the wild and deadly ecosystem of Kalee. The new partnership between Gargolyn and Kalee effectively evened out the playing field of the war.

It is difficult to say exactly where the conflict went from there up until first contact with the Chiss Ascendancy. At some point, Ruan and its colonies reestablished contact but were largely uninvolved in any hostilities, though they did establish a rather friendly trade agreement with Malastare, winning them no favor from Gargolyn or Kalee. As of today, the 'war', if it can even be called that anymore, has devolved into a series of mercenary skirmishes across different planets, usually fought between Malastare and Gargolyn-backed Kalee militants with Ruan sometimes caught in the middle. This period of time also led to a sort of technological stagnation for the Gand.

 **Meeting the Chiss**

In 1928, the Gand species made first contact with the Chiss Ascendancy when a single Gand findsman, Vux Skotr from Rishi, came upon Dxun. A jungle world, Dxun was largely used as a training facility for CEDF military personnel, namely the MagnaGuards. One particular MagnaGuard unit found itself being stalked and killed one by one by Skotr, who saw the super-soldiers as worthy prey to improve his skillset. Only three of the MagnaGuards survived the incident and successfully managed to outsmart and eventually kill Skotr. Investigations made afterward led to the Ascendancy discovering Skotr's ship, and by analyzing its flight telemetry, they were able to discover the location of Malastare, which Skotr had previously been to, possibly for reconnaissance.

Out of all the Gand factions that the Chiss could have made formal first contact with, it is fortunate that it had been those of Malastare. The Malastare Gand were genuinely fascinated by alien life, especially since discovering the derelict on their planet and were more curious than afraid when a fleet of ships suddenly dropped out of slipspace in Malastare's orbit. Before this time, the Chiss were aware of the existence of habitable planets in Gand territory through probes but deemed it too far from known space for further expansion. As the two civilizations made contact with one another, Malastare showed their eagerness in learning more of the Chiss as well as whatever knowledge of the galaxy they had. Their cousins of Gargolyn and Kalee, however, were more cautious and displayed great xenophobia, and little to no formal contact with the Ascendancy has ever been made save for a few unsavory elements in Chiss space that would have benefited from Gargolyn's lucrative operations. There have even been occasional raids made against Ascendancy worlds by Gargolyn/Kalee forces that seek potential resources that the Chiss possess. Relations with Ruan are relatively friendly, but usually only limited to trade.

Friendly interactions between the Ascendancy and Malastare has led to constant intermingling between the two groups. While initially weary, especially given their great biological and cultural differences, the Chiss have gradually developed a very close partnership with Malastare that has included trade, joint-colony development, and military operations.

 **Military**

The Gand have never really had much of a substantial military, and the navies vary in size for each of the four factions. Malastare by far has the largest thanks to the technological innovations and resources supplied by the derelict spacecraft, which has only continued to increase in size, likely in response to the Covenant threat. However, it is still hardly big enough to contest either the Covenant or even the Chiss or the Citadel by this point.

Gargolyn has a relatively smaller population than Malastare and Kalee, but possesses relatively strong fleets that are technologically and militarily capable of defending their own space and contending with possible threats. However, they are incredibly lacking in ground forces and this is where they tend to turn to Kalee, who make up for ground combat in the form of large militia groups for their complete lack of fleets. Together, the two factions are on par with Malastare. Ruan has very little military forces to speak of, save a few defense ships that have been seen patrolling their planets.

However, it wouldn't be accurate to say that the Gand's military is exemplified by their fleets and soldiers. What truly defines the Gand's military, are their findsmen. Gand findsmen are a sort of religious tradition of warriors that date back to ancient times on the Gand homeworld, when certain individuals would demonstrate the ability to find their way between the homeworld's pocket settlements. This strange ability is regarded heavily amongst all Gand, and those trackers became known as "findsmen." The findsman tradition has been maintained by the four colonies, with each one having its own religious sect that act as both shaman and law enforcers. Some findsmen subject themselves to chemical baths and even genetic manipulation to induce the appearance of knob-like growths on specific portions of the exoskeleton as a means of identifying their rank to other species. These serrated ridges, which are often located on the arms and legs and can measure up to five centimeters in length, have been used as weapons in hand-to-hand combat.

All this being said, the findsmen more or less represent the true military power of the Gand. They may have warships manned by crews and militias, but this is all vastly overshadowed by the millions of Gand serving their respective colonies as findsmen.

Findsman training requires devotion and study, and to leave the tradition is seen at times as a death sentence for the wayward hunter. If other members of the findsman's sect learn of their initiate's divergence from the path, they often declare the Gand a rogue and even try to kill him or her on sight. Members of other species often viewed the findsman tradition to be a strange sect that is devoted to a hunting religion, although the Gand themselves consider the findsmen to be "on the path to truth."

 **Technology**

As a race that has made little contact with the rest of the galaxy, Gand technology is largely undocumented. The technologies of the four Gand factions are more or less the same, the only significant difference being that of Malastare's, which, as stated before, is a blend between their technology and that of the derelict on their planet. All possess what have been dubbed Mother Ships, massive, mobile bases for Gand parties. They are totally independent crafts where a number of smaller ships can dock, and rarely enter conflict with another force. Trading between Malastare and the Ascendancy has led to the Gand developing their own version of the slipspace drive, though it is believed that this is still in the works and has not been distributed to all vessels.

Aside from that, the only relatively known aspect of their technological innovations would be their weaponry. The Gand arsenal is comprised of a variety of unique weaponry. For ranged weaponry, the Gand have designed slugthrowers, weapons that use an explosive chemical to launch metallic bolts at a high velocity. Both an automatic and sniper rifle variant of this weapon exists, with findsmen preferring to make use of the latter. A frequently seen weapon, though, is the E-11 Heavy Repeater. Based around physics similar to the slugthrowers, this rifle has an extremely rapid rate of fire and a moderate spread pattern. While relatively primitive when compared to the weaponry of the galaxy's other spacefaring factions, they have proven quite effective in combat.

Most cultures long ago abandoned the idea of melee weapons in combat, but this is a realm of combat that the Gand seem to favor immensely. While they have been seen wielding archaic weapons such as swords and knives, a frequently seen weapon is the shockprod staff, an electrical melee weapon that has become the signature weapon of choice for Gand findsmen.

 **Diplomatic Relations**

Prior to the Intergalactic War, the Gand only ever had contact with the Chiss and the Quarians. Relations with the Chiss will not be discussed here, as the assessments made in the previous codex entry were accurate. As for the Quarians, the Gand barely ever crossed paths with the migrants save for a few altercations between findsmen and small scouting parties. Neither have much that interests the other, and the Gand see the Quarians as soft, weak things that were forced to rely on a race of machines to defend them, only for that to spectacularly backfire on them.

Since the start of the Intergalactic War, the Gand have had very little involvement aside from the activities of various individuals. Aside from Malastare lending whatever assistance in can to the Chiss, the Gand have been largely overlooked by the Covenant. Ruan drew back into its territory completely, ceasing all trade, seeming to prefer waiting out the war to end. As for Gargolyn and Kalee, the two have become strangely quiet since the Covenant made their appearance. Analysts from the SSR have confirmed elements of Covenant technology in the possession of Kalee findsmen, and there have been reports of ships bearing the Gargolyn insignia flying in and out of Covenant occupied space. None of that bodes well.

Contact with between the Gand and the Citadel Council is likewise minimal. Negotiations between the Chiss and the Council had the Gand informally introduced to the wider galactic community, but beyond cooperation from a few Gand individuals, no formal first contact has been made. The Turians have reacted to the Gand findsmen with praise for their prowess in combat, while the Asari have reacted with the typical xenophilius attitude they display towards any new species. The Salarians, aside from cooperating with a few findsmen for their own military actions against the Covenant, are more or less indifferent to their existence. It is more than likely that once the Intergalactic War has passed and the Council is still intact, that indifference will change.

* * *

 **Obviously, for those of you who know about the Gand from Star Wars canon, this is a lot different than their canon history. But I wanted to tweak a few things, and took some inspiration from _StarCraft_ and _Alien_ / _Predator_ to flesh out their new history. A lot is left unexplored here, namely the status of their homeworld, their level of technological innovations, and interactions with the rest of the galaxy. That is because this codex, in-universe, was published around the time the Chiss make contact with the Council mid-Intergalactic War, by which point the Gand are still incredibly isolationist.**

 **Now, to address some comments made. One that was mentioned in all is how 'weak' I've made the Humans. That was intentional. At first, I was considering not even making Humans a part of this story at all, and to have a story that focuses on an entirely non-Human, alien rich universe. But outside sources convinced me otherwise. My reasoning behind making them clients of the Turians was an idea I had experimented with for a while, especially after reading certain fanfiction works. In my personal opinion, Humans in _Mass Effect_ are an incredibly volatile and dangerous species. For starters, they are far more aggressive than any species in the Citadel community. Almost immediately after they jumped onto the scene, Humans started grabbing territory and resources at an alarming rate. Even some of the more friendly Council races find Humanity to be brash and antagonistic. I know some may argue that these aggressive traits made Humans successful in the galaxy, but if you ask me, Humanity was not ready to obtain a Council seat by the events of the original _Mass Effect_. Humans galactic relations were still in their infancy and there are several races who've been a part of the galactic community for far longer who have contributed far more than they have who still have not gained a seat on the Council and some, like the Krogan, who don't even have an embassy. I understand that that's in large part their own fault, but if they haven't been able to correct that in centuries, then only three decades is certainly not enough time for the Humans. Most Humans won't listen when you try to tell them that, though, as exemplified by certain groups like Cerberus, and individuals like Ambassador Udina. Humans are individualistic, selfish, and immature, especially when compared to the other races. They contribute little and expect to gain far more than what we put in. My idea, is that under the guidance of a far more experiences and hardened species like the Turians, they could potentially blossom in the right direction, and experiencing a war on such as a scale as the Covenant War will significantly change their perspective of the galaxy and leave them wondering if they truly are ready for what the universe has in store for them.**

 **And onto an issue brought on by Sparta49 regarding the renaming of the Forerunners and the Precursors. First off, Sparta, I very much appreciate your honesty and criticism. Second, the renaming of the two ancient races is mostly from the point-of-view of the Chiss. To the Covenant, the "Chozo" are still the Forerunners. And on the issue of other things appearing in this story because of those changes, like putting in the Eredar, that won't happen unless truly necessary and it won't have that great of an impact on the story if it does. If people continue to believe otherwise, that's their problem.**

 **Thanks for reading. My version of the Quarians is next.**


	4. Quarian Migrant Fleet

" _I don't dislike the Quarians. Quite the opposite really. I rather admire them. Their tenacity and will to survive in spite of the odds continually being stacked against them is worthy of praise. The Council thinks we're brave and hardy? Hah. They haven't met our neighbors..._ "

\- Vice Admiral Mitth'raw'nuruodo, Chiss Expansionary Defense Force. 2146.

* * *

 **The Quarians**

Driven from their home system by the Geth nearly three centuries ago, most Quarians ( _Vun'zan'ah ch'un'ifn_ , meaning "suited monk") now live aboard the Migrant Fleet, a flotilla of fifty-thousand spaceships all running on the Quarians' own version of the slipspace drive.

The Quarians are, like the Chiss and Humans, a mammalian species with primate characteristics, though they are generally shorter and slimmer than either species. They have skeletal systems, facial structures, and sexual dimorphisms are identical as well, though basic similarities end there. Quarians are dextro-amino based, a trait only shared by the Turians of Citadel space, and thus find foods eaten by other races to be inedible or at worse times, poisonous. Physically speaking, Quarians have three fingers on both hands which include a thumb, an index finger, and a long finger, as well as three toes on each foot, though male Quarians seem to lack a third toe. Instead of hair or scalp crests like the Asari, Quarians have three fleshy, triangular flaps on their heads, which lack any visible ears. Sprouting from the bases of these flaps area number of quill-like cilia that grow in length with age and can be stylized similar to hair. Quarian legs also bow back significantly, giving them an almost digitigrade appearance. Quarian skin color generally ranges from pale white to dark purple, and their eyes are a bright, bio-luminescent white.

The most distinguishing feature of Quarian biology, however, would be their weak immune systems. The Quarian home planet of Rannoch has no insect life and very few pathogens, and what few microbes and viruses that were native were actually beneficial to Quarian biology in the long run. This led to the Quarians developing a sort of symbiotic relationship with their environment.

 **History**

 **Early History**

The Quarians first evolved on Rannoch, an arid planet with minimal ocean coverage attributed to the planet's close proximity to its star, Tikkun. The Tikkun system is located on the edge of the Bakchou Arm, the nearest spiral arm to Ettarue where the Chiss and Covenant species reside. So far, the Quarians are the only sapient organic species to be encountered in Bakchou, which has been minimally explored by other civilizations.

The prehistoric Quarians were discovered by the Chozo tens of thousands of years ago, and apparently took an interest in the species, setting up an outpost on the planet Adas, the third planet from Tikkun.

Since the beginning of their recorded history, the Quarians have always been a technologically capable species. The became spacefaring in 1770, shortly thereafter discovering the Chozo outpost on Adas which had long fallen into ruin. The ruins, though, held blueprints for an older variation of the slipspace drive. The Quarians were able to decipher what they could from the blueprints and used it to develop their own version, making them the only species besides the Chiss and the Covenant races to develop slipspace as their original means of FTL travel. Their slipspace capabilities are not quite as advanced though, as their drives generate less microjumps within a single slipspace transition to measure the dilation involved in a jump, ranking them behind the Covenant and the Chiss in terms of effectiveness.

Despite this technological success, Quarian expansion was not overly successful itself. The Quarians' immune systems and dextro-amino biologies made colonization of other worlds incredibly difficult. Before the Geth uprising, only about seven worlds were successfully colonized, including the four other terrestrial worlds in the Tikkun system as well as three extrasolar worlds: Haestrom, Ke'tosh, and Jirali.

 **The Geth War**

This is the piece of Quarian history that the species is most renownedly known for throughout the galaxy. The Geth War, one of numerous titles bestowed, was a short but savage war between the Quarian people and a synthetic race of their own creation called the Geth. The Chozo outpost on Adas revealed to the Quarians they were not alone in the galaxy, and the species knew that contact with another civilization was inevitable. However, in the event of hostile contact, the Quarians were uneasy. Well aware of their own biological fallacies in the face of threats, the Quarians conceived the Geth as an army to be used as a deterrent against hostile extraterrestrials.

Construction of the Geth began in the late 1800s. The title "Geth" translate from the Quarian language of Khelish as "servant of the people". The Geth were formerly unintelligent machines that, similar to VI programs utilized by the Citadel races, bore very little intelligence other than programmed task vectors. But due to modifications made by the Quarians in an attempt to perform more complex tasks, the Geth developed a sophisticated neural network. With this change, the Geth gradually became more intelligent and unpredictable, and began questioning the nature of their existence to their Quarian handlers.

This development terrified the Quarians for a number of reasons. One was that the Quarians had created an artificial intelligence, something which they had no prior experience in, and were unsure of the consequences. The biggest fear here was that an artificial intelligence with the ability to learn would quickly surpass any organic species and become beyond their control. But another great reason for the Quarians' fear, was that the very existence of the Geth was a violation of Quarian religious beliefs. Ancient Quarian scriptures show that slavery is considered to be the most heinous of crimes and is highly reviled in the Quarian society. By obtaining sapience, the Geth had effectively become slaves to the Quarians.

Faced with this dilemma, the Quarians attempted a total shutdown of the Geth network. This failed, as the Geth had long adapted past this, and the Quarians had no choice by that point than to declare martial law. Taking up arms, the Quarians engaged in a mass military movement against Geth units, but severely underestimated the power and sophistication of the Geth's neural network. The Geth adapted to defend themselves, and with their opponents taking up arms themselves, the Quarians were slaughtered.

Less than 1% of the Quarian population survived. A few million escaped and left the former Quarian-occupied space in a large fleet, fully expecting the Geth to pursue them. But, they never did. Apparantly convinced of their safety, the Geth chose not to pursue the Quarians.

The Geth War was an outright disaster for the Quarian people. The Quarian immune systems had already made colonization difficult, but with the limited resources of a refugee population, it became impossible. Multiple generations aboard sterile ships compounded this problem even more, forcing the Quarians into permanent protective suits for survival. For nearly three centuries, the Quarians traversed across Forn Gorek in the Migrant Fleet, as it came to be called, taking what resources they could find from multiple worlds they came across to sustain themselves. They even retain hopes of someday reclaiming Rannoch from the Geth.

 **First Contact**

The Quarians made first contact with the Chiss in 2093, shortly after the start of the Insurrectionist movement. The Quarians came upon the system of Balmorra, home to a large industrial colony on the planet Nevoota. Initial attempts at contact between the two sides was difficult at first due to the language barrier. Things did not go much better when official negotiations took place, largely due to the revelation that the Chiss used artificial intelligence in everyday life, something that the Quarians revile and see as a danger to the galaxy as whole. What followed was a shouting match between the Quarian Admiralty Board and the Chiss delegation, culminating in the Chiss ending negotiations and kindly requesting that the Quarians vacate the system.

Despite these failed negotiations, the Chiss and the Quarians maintained a lukewarm relationship with each other. The meeting between the two races opened new realms of interest for the Quarians, including technology and resource exchange. Some Quarians who had long given up hope on reclaiming their homeworld even took up residence on Chiss worlds, while Quarian youths on their pilgrimages would often find themselves in Chiss employ. Some Quarians even hope that the Ascendancy, with the CEDF's large fleets and military, could one day help them get Rannoch back, even if the possibility is unlikely.

 **The Migrant Fleet**

The Migrant Fleet is home to approximately 17 million Quarians. It consists of various clans, sometimes spread over several ships. Each individual ship has long been retrofitted to house as large a crew as possible. Conditions aboard every vessel in the Migrant Fleet are extremely cramped. Space is at a premium because of the sheer number of Quarians living aboard. Captains are also keen to increase the size of their crew, as this increases their status in Quarian society. Living space is therefore a priority; the cargo holds of freighters, for example, are converted into small compartments for individuals to live in, often lined with colorful fabrics to make it an individual space and reduce noise.

Quarians also serve volunteer rotations aboard the three Liveships which form the heart of the Fleet. Enormous vessels which are recognized as being incredible feats of aerospace and agricultural engineering, the Liveships provide much of the food for the Migrant Fleet. If even one of these vital ships was destroyed or damaged beyond repair, millions would starve. For this reason, they are positioned in the center of the Migrant Fleet and heavily defended by the Quarian navy. Little more is known about the Liveships, since only Quarian ships are allowed to enter the flotilla.

Everything the Quarians do must help to ensure the continued survival of the Migrant Fleet. Because of the limited resources, each Quarian must go on a rite of passage known as the Pilgrimage when they come of age. They leave the fleet and only return once they have found something of value they can bring back to their people. The Pilgrimage forms a large part of maintaining the fleet's survival, as well as being a safeguard against inbreeding. Since making contact with other races, the Pilgrimage has also given Quarians a chance to explore galactic society and appreciate their own people back on the fleet. Young Quarians are prepared for their Pilgrimage by having lessons in life outside the Migrant Fleet, receiving gifts to help them, and being treated for immunodeficiency before they are allowed to leave.

Apart from their Pilgrimages, quarians typically spend their entire lives living shipboard and contributing to the Migrant Fleet. In addition, Quarians do not normally welcome outsiders onto the Migrant Fleet, because visitors carry an unacceptable risk of contagion; taken together, these factors mean Quarians tend to be quite insular, caring little about the galaxy outside the fleet.

 **Government and Military**

Quarian society is technically still under the same martial law as it was during the Geth War, meaning that the captain of a ship has final say in disputes. However, in practice, they are largely democratic.

Every Quarian vessel has an elected civilian council that the captain defers to for judgment. Representatives for each ship serve on the Conclave, the democratic civilian government of the Migrant Fleet that makes the day-to-day decisions about fleet business: collection of resources, the current course of the Flotilla, policing and so on. The Conclave itself is overseen by the Admiralty Board, five Quarians who can override the Conclave's decisions only if said decisions could potentially threaten the survival of the Quarians. Such a thing has only ever happened four times in history, and each time ended with the Admiralty Board members being forced to step down from their posts, letting new Quarians take their places.

The Quarian Migrant Fleet is comprised of five groups, each one commanded by a member of the Admiralty Board.

The Heavy Fleet is the Migrant Fleet's main military force and is led by Admiral Han'Gerral vas Neema. It features several heavy frigates and an advanced fighter squadron, as well as the Migrant Fleet Marine Corps, the Quarians' military arm and police force.

The Defense Fleet, commanded by Admiral Rael'Zorah vas Idenna (who is most famously known as the Quarian admiral who routed an attempted Covenant attack against the Migrant Fleet in 2145), is charged with backing up the Heavy Fleet in combat.

The Patrol Fleet manages navigation, internal security, internship conflicts, and crimes. It is currently headed by Admiral Shala'Raan vas Tonbey.

The Civilian Fleet commanded by ADmiral Zaal'Koris vas Qwib-Qwib comprises the Quarian civilian ships and the majority of the entire Migrant Fleet.

Finally, the Special Projects arm of the Migrant Fleet, representing the minority, is a collection of small research vessels responsible for numerous scientific breakthroughs utilized by the rest of the fleet. Compared to the other groups, it is relatively new, founded and currently commanded by Admiral Daro'Xen vas Moreh.

Despite the distinctions, almost every ship in the Migrant Fleet is more than capable of fighting against threats. Most weapons used by Quarian infantry forces are designed to counter synthetic forces like the Geth, including the Adas Anti-Synthetic Rifle and the Reegar Carbine. However, the Quarian armament selection does include typical, primitive bullet-based weaponry, though they are not widely used.

 **Diplomatic Relations**

While their relationship with each other is somewhat cordial, the Quarians have a rather mixed relationship with the Chiss, their oldest political associations. The Chiss tend to see the Quarians as a nuisance due to the negative impact their fleet has when it enters a system and are rather critical of how they handled the Geth's rise to sentience. The Quarians, in turn, are extremely divided on the Chiss. As stated before, Chiss worlds and ships are ideal ventures for Quarians on their pilgrimages, and the SSR has taken in a number of Quarians as strategic consultants. But the issue of AI is something that the Quarians dislike immensely about the Ascendancy solely because of historical precedence. However, unlike the Quarians and the Geth, the Chiss and their AIs learned to fight together, and are quite comfortable with the other. Naturally, the Quarians find it insane that the Chiss' AI are even allowed to aid Chiss in matters of technology and genetic engineering.

When the Covenant launched their great war against the Ascendancy, the Quarians were understandably terrified. In the Covenant, the Quarians were met with a force more numerically and technologically superior to them in every way, possibly even more so than the Geth. For a time, the Quarians were largely divided on their stance in the war. One one side, they actually do sympathize with the Chiss and believe that when the Covenant have dealt with them, they will more than likely attempt to absorb the Quarians forcefully into their empire if not eradicate them outright. On the other, the Quarians are unwilling to endanger their fleet in war against the Covenant. The Covenant, in turn, were rather indifferent to the Quarians, not seeing them as being worth their time.

This changed in 2145, when a naval skirmish broke out between the Migrant Fleet and a Covenant battle fleet under the command of Shipmaster Juko 'Nracamaiee. The Covenant had been pursuing a Chiss force in the Vodilux Star Cluster. Survivors of the attack sought refuge aboard the Migrant Fleet, who were in the area at the time. When the Covenant learned that the Quarians were harboring the Chiss they sought to kill, they demanded they surrender. What followed was an intense verbal altercation between Shipmaster 'Nracamaiee and Admirals Rael'Zorah and Han'Gerral, escalating into a full blown naval battle. The Covenant fleet, significantly outnumbered by the entire Migrant Fleet, was decimated, but the Quarians themselves lost several vessels, including two Liveships. This cemented in the Quarians a deep hatred for the Covenant and a desire to bring them down at any cost.

The Citadel Council and Terminus Systems have no political relations with the Quarians because the Migrant Fleet has not yet passed through any area of space connected to the Mass Relays. Council military forces, though, have worked with Quarians in various naval and infantry battles against the Covenant in space outside of the Mass Relay network. Due to similarities in biology, Turian and Quarian romantic couplings have become a surprisingly common sight.


	5. The Covenant

" _Ah, yes. The Covenant. The wayward affiliation of alien races responsible for the murder of hundreds of thousands of sentient beings and bending the galaxy over in the span of a few decades, completely warping the political landscape of the galaxy as we know it. You know, before the Chiss came along and brought these... barbarians onto our doorstep, we had peace. All species, in relative harmony. When Khar'shan wasn't burned to ashes, when the words of an Asari still mattered in galactic politics, when Humans were actually given the time of day. What have these newcomers brought since their arrival? Death. Nothing more._ "

\- Anonymous Human citizen, Citadel. 2158.

* * *

 **The Covenant**

The Covenant Empire is a religious affiliation comprising a number of sapient alien species that inhabit the Ettarue Arm, through which their sphere of influence is based. Their number of colonies is unclear, but it is most likely that it encompasses thousands of systems.

One of the most technologically advanced faction in the modern galactic era, the Covenant are infamous for instigating the Intergalactic War, the largest multispecies conflict in the known history of Forn Gorek. Since its inception, the Covenant has come to include at nine races in its caste, with a confirmed number of at least three other that are affiliated and engaged in trade disputes but have not been officially absorbed into the empire's ranks. These races, known as the "Covenant fringe", are not elaborated upon in this entry, instead bearing their own codex entry.

 **History**

The Covenant was founded in 852 BCE when the San 'Shyuum and the Sangheili established a mutual alliance in the wake of a civil war between their races, making the alliance between the two the oldest institutional association between sentient species in the modern galactic era.

This war, known to the two species as the War of Beginnings, began eighty-six years earlier when the San 'Shyuum discovered the Sangheili homeworld of Sanghelios. Both races shared strong religious views towards the Chozo, whom the San 'Shyuum refer to as the "Forerunners", and the San 'Shyuum had originally come to Sanghelios with the intent of studying a rich assortment of Chozo artifacts left there. However, both races soon found themselves sharing different ideologies of how such artifacts should be treated. The Sangheili believed that Chozo artifacts were sacred and should not be touched, while the San 'Shyuum believed that they should be studied and use them to make practical objects of their own design. The highly-militarized Sangheili attacked the San 'Shyuum almost as soon as their differences became apparent, starting the war between the two races.

At the start of the war, the Sangheili had a numerical advantage in terms of ships and soldiers. Their strength and military tactics were without peer. However the San 'Shyuum's technology, gleaned from years of travel and study of a Chozo Dreadnought they possessed, gave them the advantage in ship-to-ship combat. This proved to be the most common type of combat witnessed during the war.

Eventually both species came to fear a very real threat: annihilation. The Sangheili feared it through the San 'Shyuum's use of their unstoppable dreadnought, and the San 'Shyuum came to admit that if the Sangheili were this dangerous, there might be other forms of sentient life far more threatening to their race. The long and brutal war caused the Sangheili to violate their religious beliefs, studying and incorporating Chozo technology in order to avoid defeat. This incorporation of Chozo technology eventually caused a stalemate in the war against the San 'Shyuum, however their dreadnought remained unstoppable. Faced with this bitter reality, the Sangheili surrendered.

With a proud tradition as warriors, the Sangheili held great respect for a worthy adversary, and after their surrender, the San 'Shyuum sought to seek a burgeoning covenant of the two races. A tentative truce was worked out between the two species through the Sangheili leader, Pelahsar the Strident, and the San 'Shyuum Breaking Shadow. The two agreed to forgive the past crimes of their species and began efforts towards an alliance. This eventually came about with the signing of the Writ of Union, a treaty that ended the conflict and brought about peace between the two factions.

In time, this mutual partnership developed into the Covenant Empire, and over the course of the next two-thousand years, it came across and absorbed into its collective the Lekgolo, Yanme'e, Kig-Yar, Unggoy, and Jiralhanae, in that order. Details of these races and their histories up until their absorption into the Covenant are explained in the following sections below. The Covenant leadership convenes from High Charity, a mobile capital city that measures in 348 kilometers in diameter and 505 kilometers in height.

Skipping ahead to the year 2125, the Covenant by that point were ruled by a triumvirate of religious hierarchs known as the High Prophets of Truth, Regret, and Mercy. Not too long after the three were coronated, the Covenant made gradual first contact with the Chiss Ascendancy at the agricultural planet, Harvest. Kig-Yar pirates initially discovered the planet first and engaged in plunders and raids on cargo ships moving to and from the planet. Word of this reached the wider Covenant, who sent what were originally thought to be representatives for negotiations.

Things broke down almost immediately. The representatives, which consisted of groups of Jiralhanae and Unggoy, incited the first hostilities when an overeager Unggoy shot and killed a member of Harvest's militia. Most of the Chiss delegation was mercilessly slaughtered while the Covenant party quickly fled aboard the Rapid Conversion and relayed what had occurred back to High Charity. It is unclear what exactly happened in the interim between this moment and the declaration of war, but the Hierarchs declared that the entire Chiss species was an affront to their gods and demanded that they be exterminated. This decision would spark the Intergalactic War.

For the next few decades, the Covenant systematically obliterated every Chiss planet they could find. The Citadel Council entered into the war in 2141, joining on the side of the Chiss, leading to the Covenant fighting two fronts at once. Their numerically and technologically superior forces gradually overwhelmed both factions, and during this time, the Raloi, a Citadel species, were enslaved and brought into the Covenant collective.

 **Races**

 _The San 'Shyuum_

The San 'Shyuum ( _Vasci bah taskebasi_ , translated from the Chiss native language of Cheunh as "worms of treachery") are a sapient race of segmented annelid-like beings that make up the leadership caste within the Covenant. While they are very advanced and intellectual creatures, the San 'Shyuum evolved on a world with very low gravity, and as a result, they are physically frail and weak to the point of using anti-gravity technology to move around.

Since before achieving space travel, the San 'Shyuum were incredibly advanced, with their technological achievements enhanced by the presence of numerous Chozo relics on their home planet, Janjur Qom. The San 'Shyuum redeveloped technology, language, and culture based on their observation of these artifacts.

Around 2,200 BCE, the San 'Shyuum were actually embroiled in a civil war amongst their own species known as the War of Wills. In the war, two radical factions of San 'Shyuum, called the Stoics and the Reformists, came to ideological blows in regards to the treatment of an intact Chozo spacecraft, classified as a type of dreadnought (though recent historical analyses of Chozo innovations has suggested the vessel was designed for a purpose outside of naval combat). The Reformists wanted to develop new technologies by entering the dreadnought, while the conservative Stoics refused to enter and desecrate the ancient ship.

Towards the climax of the war, the Reformists infiltrated the dreadnought and figured out how to activate it. The Stoics, outraged, were unable to take any action as it would result in them damaging the artifact of their reverence. The Reformists took flight from Janjur Qom, and in the process they broke off an enormous chunk of rock in doing so. This rock would later become the foundation of High Charity, the future holy city of the Covenant. Centuries later, the descendants of the Stoics met the Sangheili, and together they formed the Covenant Empire.

The San 'Shyuum exert complete control over the Covenant's religious and political affairs, and are highly zealous and fanatical in their worship of the Chozo themselves. It was they who first instigated the Intergalactic War in the wake of their declaration of heresy towards the Chiss, plunging the galaxy into full-scale war.

 _The Sangheili_

The saurian species known as the Sangheili ( _Ch'ah htusah ch'eo tisan'sasi_ , meaning "I glorify my kin") is one of the principal races in the Covenant Empire. Originating from the planet Sanghelios, located in a triple star system, they are one of the tallest races in the galaxy, with the males standing at least nine feet in height. Compared to most species, they have jaws that are quadruple-hinged, with an upper jaw and four lower mandibles arranged in two tiers as well as tetradactyl hands, each having two fingers in the middle and and opposing thumb on either side, plus digitigrade legs. Their skin is a combination of leather and scales in certain places, a remnant of their evolutionary history as reptilian predators. Oxygen breathers, they have a bnary circulatory system that pumps indigo-colored blood through their bodies.

Culturally, the Sangheili are powerful, honor driven warriors with a military caste system similar to that of the Turian Hierarchy, but with a greater emphasis on martial prowess and military endeavors. Due to their skill in combat, the Sangheili have formed the military backbone of the Covenant for almost the entirety of its existence.

Prior to the Covenant's formation, the Sangheili had only just entered a Space Age when their homeworld, Sanghelios, was discovered by the San 'Shyuum. Like the San 'Shyuum, the Sangheili worshipped the Chozo, who had at one point visited Sanghelios before their disappearance and left a large abundance of artifacts. The Sangheili revered the objects these "gods" left, and much like the San 'Shyuum Stoics before them, considered tampering with them heretical. When the Reformists arrived, it really wasn't much of a surprise when both incredibly zealous groups conflicted over this difference in ideology. As stated before, this War of Beginnings resulted in a stalemate between the two races, leading to a partnership that would slowly evolve into the Covenant.

Sangheili are famous (or infamous, depending on who you ask) for their strength, pride, and skill as combat tacticians. In spite of the barbarism displayed heavily in the Intergalactic War, the Sangheili are not without more admirable traits. Their warriors form very close-knitted relationships, referring to their comrades as "brothers" and remaining intensely loyal to them, and their admiration for honorable fighters, whether they be Sangheili or not, make it common for them to have such an admiration for their adversaries.

 _The Huragok_

The creatures that the Covenant calls Huragok ( _Ch'ascakiset visivcasi_ , meaning "artificial character") are perhaps the most mysterious race in the Covenant. The only non-combatant group in the Covenant hierarchy, the Huragok resemble large pink tentacled slugs that float above the ground using two gas-bags. Their tentacles have the ability to split into millions of thread-like cilia, which they use for grasping and managing objects more ambidextrously.

In actuality, the Huragok are not biological creatures, but cybernetic robots constructed by the Chozo. They have been known to exist in various Chozo ruins all across Forn Gorek, which was most likely the reason as to how the Covenant came upon them in the first place.

Huragok are highly efficient technicians, able to manage, repair, or even create any type of machine through simple observational learning. They also do not care about the Covenant's philosophies. Their only desire is to integrate with technology, not caring about what faction they assist in the process. As such, many Huragok have found their way into both Chiss Ascendancy and Citadel Council services, proving to be invaluable assets on all sides.

 _The Lekgolo_

Hailing from one of the moons of the gas giant Te, the Lekgolo ( _Von'zan'ch'ah bah rast'an't_ , meaning "assembly of serpants") are a Covenant species, arguably the most biologically unique. The race is comprised of small, colonial worm-like creatures that can join together to form purpose specific assemblages through use of microscoping silia. These assemblages, which can range in size and form, are called Mgalekgolo.

The Lekgolo were the third race to be inducted into the Covenant. The Covenant found them in 784 BCE when they arrived at Te in search of Chozo artifacts. They soon discovered that the rings of Te were in fact the remains of an ancient Chozo orbital construct which the Lekgolo were literally devouring in droves. The San 'Shyuum viewed this as a heresy and, in an event known as the Taming of the Lekgolo, declared war on the worm-like aliens. In the Lekgolo, the Sangheili found a respectable adversary, as the worms' ability to merge into larger assemblages made them formidable ground combatants. Impressed, the Sangheili actually suggested to the San 'Shyuum the prospect of allying with the Lekgolo and putting them to better uses as part of hte Covenant. The Covenant leaders eventually agreed, forcing a pact with the Lekgolo.

In contrast to the other Covenant species, the Lekgolo are not strictly attached to the Covenant's homogenized religion and are content with aiding their longtime allies in exchange for security. The Covenant tolerates this due to the Lekgolo's limited communication capabilities and their use as shock troopers. The Mgalekgolo themselves are the strongest and most resilient member species in the Covenant, armed with near-impenetrable armor and powerful assault cannons.

 _The Yanme'e_

In 1112, the Covenant discovered Palamok, a largely broiling world with a plasmic molten outer core which the Covenant sought to exploit. What they did not immediately realize, however, was that the planet was inhabited by the Yanme'e ( _Ch'itnato csahn_ , meaning "ugly king").

The Yanme'e were the fourth race to join the Covenant. An insectoid species, the Yanme'e closely resemble mosquitoes, bloodsucking, flight-capable insects native to the Human homeworld of Earth, albeit with more apparent chitinous exoskeletons that provide limited armor protection against basic projectile weaponry. Much like the ancient Rachni, the Yanme'e are hive minded beings living under a caste system ruled by queens, and therefore are more geared towards working in concert with larger groups. They are believed to have evolved from winged, tree-dwelling arthropods on Palamok which lived in deep underground burrows that thrived off of the warmth emitted from the planet's core. They are the only known species in the galaxy with natural flight capability that, when combined with the Covenant's antigravity technology, gives them an almost insurmountable strategic advantage in combat.

Like many other races in the Covenant, the Yanme'e initially resisted absorption into the Covenant, until the San 'Shyuum were able to negotiate the Yanme'e into the Covenant ranks peacefully. For the majority of their time in the Covenant, the Yanme'e were often used as engineers due to their aptitude for technology.

 _The Kig-Yar_

Sporting both avian and reptilian characteristics, the Kig-Yar ( _Ch'iticen'bo csinot_ , meaning "hateful bandit") were the fifth race to be indoctrinated into the Covenant. Egg-laying creatures who evolved in a low-gravity environment, the Kig-Yar have a unique aspect amongst them in that there is a diverse assortment of genetic variation within their race. There are at least three morphologically distinct subtypes that have been identified: the mainstream Ruuhtians who thrive on most of their homeworld's largest continents; the Ibie'shan, Kig-Yar who originate from the small volcanic continent of Ibie'sh who have more fierce, reptilian traits than their cousins; and the T'vaoans, highly robust Kig-Yar with more avian-like traits than their cousins including rows of feathers, stockier heads, smaller eyes, and darker complexions. Unlike the Ruuhtians and the Ibie'shan, the T'vaoans did not evolve on their homeworld, but rather the large asteroid of T'vao which was one of the first Kig-Yar colonies to be set up. Traits shared amongst all three subspecies include sharp beaks lined with razor-sharp teeth, three-fingered hands, sharp talons on their feet, and a strong salty stench that most other races find quite unpleasant.

The Kig-Yar first evolved on Eayn, a forested moon in orbit of the planet Chu'ot in the Y'Deio system. Their early history had the species divided into clans that sailed across their homeworld's seas as pirates, raiding the encampments and settlements of rival clans. Even after achieving space travel, the Kig-Yar resumed this way of life, preying upon merchant starships.

Around 1,100 years ago, the Covenant came upon the Kig-Yar's home system with small contingent fleets, which the Kig-Yar directly attacked, leading to a long naval war in the system. Eventually, realizing the unlikelihood of them winning against a numerically and technologically superior foe, the Kig-Yar offered their services to the Covenant, making them the only Covenant race in history to have been absorbed into the alliance voluntarily. Often, though, this was merely used as an excuse to continue their criminal activities, spending time outside of Covenant endeavors pillaging merchant ships of other species. Unwittingly, it was this plundering lifestyle that resulted in the Kig-Yar, and the Covenant as whole, discovering the Chiss colony of Harvest and starting the Intergalactic War.

It should be noted that only about 30% percent of the Kig-Yar population is actually allied with the Covenant. The other 70% makes up the most of the Ettarue Arm's more unsavory, criminally based regions. Many of these factions, ruled by various Kig-Yar female authority figures and pirate organizations, have been spotted within the Terminus Systems as of late.

 _The Unggoy_

Unggoy ( _Ch'itzishn ch'un'ifn_ , meaning "cold monk") are a cross between both chordates and arthropods, as they possess both a vertebrate and a chitinous exoskeleton. Physically, however, they resemble short, bipedal turtles with gorilla-like forearms, with which they also use in locomotion to increase speed. They are the only sapient species in the galaxy to breathe methane rather than oxygen, forcing them to wear breathing apparatuses outside of their homeworld.

The Unggoy are historically the sixth to join the Covenant's ranks. Both before and after their induction, Unggoy history was laced with tragedy. In ancient times, the Unggoy's homeworld of Balaho experienced a catastrophic environmental collapse caused by global over-industrialization. By the time the Covenant found them, the Unggoy were nothing more than mingling primitives desperately pining for resources. The Covenant's annexation of the Unggoy race was brutal, as the Unggoy, inexperienced in the art of war and defense, were overwhelmed by the invaders and surrendered only a few short hours after the initial assaults.

In 2062, the Unggoy actually attempted to stage a rebellion against the Covenant when the Kig-Yar population aboard High Charity, in retaliation for the Unggoy inadvertently destroying several of their eggs in the habitats the two species were forced to share, poisoned the recreational narcotics that the Unggoy enjoyed to forcefully sterilize them. The rebellion was short and quickly put down by the Sangheili, but rather than force brutal punishment on the Unggoy like the San 'Shyuum and Kig-Yar both wanted, the Sangheili were actually impressed by the uncharacteristic resolve that the Unggoy displayed during the crisis. The Sangheili forgave the Ungoy and allowed them to enter the Covenant military as armed infantry units.

Despite this act of mercy from the Sangheili, the Unggoy's place in the Covenant hierarchy is still wretched. Of all the Covenant species, the Unggoy have the lowest position in the caste system, being treated more like slaves than any other race in their ranks. To both the Covenant and the wider galaxy, the Unggoy are looked upon as pitiful creatures. The Covenant use the high breeding rate of the Unggoy to their advantage on the battlefield, with occasionally overwhelming squads of Unggoy frequently being sent in as cannon fodder.

 _The Jiralhanae_

The Jiralhanae ( _Ruzihn raszercu'en_ , meaning "wild servant") are a large, bipedal race of dark-skinned mammals sporting coats of fur in variable shades. Their large, stocky appearance is most likely due to the gravity on their planet, which is about twice the gravity of that on other species' homeworlds like Csilla and Palaven.

Said homeworld, Doisac, was a temperamental forest world with a challenging and diversifying environment infested with beasts of various shape, size, and ferocity. This envrionment played a great role in shaping the Jiralhanae's savage and brutal behavior. Despite this, the Jiralhanae actually did manage to achieve spaceflight status, though their warlike nature meant they quickly collapsed into civil war and afterwards, fell back to their former pre-spaceflight status. This repeated itself several times before the Covenant discovered them in 2092.

Having only just rediscovered radio and rocketry, the primitive Jiralhanae at the time had begun to rally under the leadership of a chieftain known as Maccabeus. The Jiralhanae under Maccabeus were quickly forced into submission by the Covenant's superior forces. Maccabeus himself used information he gathered from other Covenant worlds to fully unite his people. Maccabeus himself was known to have been present during the initial first contact at Harvest; he was one of the many Covenant casualties of that conflict, and he was subsequently succeeded by his nephew, Tartarus.

The Jiralhanae are widely reviled by the rest of the galaxy, more so than most other races in the Covenant, for their incredibly aggressive behavior. Even though they are essentially a unified people, their homeworld is forever war torn, and the species is known for their particular joy in vicious activity. They have earned the hatred of much of the galaxy; even the Sangheili, their most frequent military allies in Covenant endeavors, fear the Jiralhanae for their monomaniacal behavior.

 _The Raloi_

The most recent species to join the Covenant, the Raloi ( _Ttoci nuz_ _vacosetahn_ , meaning "feathered newcomer") are species originating on the planet Turvess. The planet is located within Citadel Space, making the Raloi the only Citadel species to join the Covenant throughout its history.

Biologically, the Raloi are sentient avians who evolved from flightless, omnivorous birds similar to the non-sentient Lisk native to the Chiss colony world of Hoth. They possess slim torsos and muscular arms tipped with four-fingered, talon-like hands that evolved over tens of thousands of years from wings. Their necks are very vulnerable, and are reflexively guarded during combat. The Raloi have a convex face ending in a beak-like mouth, and their heads are with a feather-lined ridge protruding from the skull. These feathers are known to shfit in color depending on a Raloi's mood: green indicates inquisitiveness, thoughtfulness or amusement; orange is a sign of happiness; and blue is anger, disgust, irritation or seriousness.

Only a few short years before the Citadel Council was dragged into the Intergalactic War, the Raloi made first contact with the Asari. After launching their first space telescope and discovering an Asari cruiser in their system, the Raloi prepared to be fully welcomed as a new member race of the Citadel Council. However, an unexpected attack on Turvess by the Covenant destroyed any chance of this. Turvess is located in the Attican Traverse, which was the front of the Covenant's assault against the Council in the Intergalactic War. The primitive Raloi were completely outclassed by the invaders, their population subdued and forced to enter the war as slave soldiers.

The inclusion of the Raloi into the Covenant provided beneficial contributions to the Covenant war machine; before they were enslaved by the Covenant, the Raloi had greatly improved their own technology using Element Zero-based tech supplied to them by the Asari. The Covenant have been able to reverse engineer this tech to better understand its strengths and benefits, giving them an edge against the Council races.

( _Information from this point forward is limited for the moment and subject to change. Both Ascendancy and Council war analysts are still gathering information._ )

 **Politics**

For the entirety of its existence, the Covenant has been largely ruled by the San 'Shyuum and Sangheili, though the former obviously hold greater sway. Analysts have concluded that the Covenant government consists of echelons, the highest being the High Council, a legislative group consisting of hundreds of San 'Shyuum and Sangheili authority figures and headed by the High Prophets. Below the High Council, numerous ministries exist, each dictating a single, but important role within the Covenant governmental body and sporting a San 'Shyuum minister.

 **Religion**

The entire Covenant culture is based around its species' religion, which is based solely in the worship and reverence of the Chozo. Now, to understand the Covenant's religion, it seems appropriate to go into more detail on the Chozo. These ancient beings were known to have ruled much if not all of the Ettarue Arm and even other regions beyond, a noteworthy example being the research outpost on the Quarian world of Adas. While less abundant, a few outposts have been sighted in Citadel Space, one such being located on Dekuuna, the homeworld of the Elcor. None of these ruins have been studied in great detail, however.

Predating Citadel Space's Protheans by 50,000 years, the Chozo are, by far, the most scientifically advanced species ever documented. The technology and artifacts preserved in their ruins are incredibly cultivated and progressive. Some accomplishments they had conceived include solidifed surfaces made of meticulous energy, anti-gravity technology not reliant on Element Zero, and synthetic constructs including but not limited to the Huragok. Much of the technolgoy utilized by the Covenant is based on Chozo artifacts.

The Chozo were known to have possibly meddled in the development of various species in the ancient past, including the Quarians, (possibly) the Elcor, and many of the races in the Covenant. The Covenant religion stemmed off of information loosely deciphered from these ancient visitations, though it is suggested that much of the Covenant's opinions of the Chozo is heavily exaggerated. Nonetheless, the Covenant races, specifically the San 'Shyuum, arrived at the conclusion that the Chozo advanced themselves scientifically and biologically to the point where they achieved some form of "transcendence". Because of this, the Covenant devotes itself to searching for and recovering of Chozo artifacts, looking to recreate whatever process they believe did this. At several points in the Covenant's history, this desire to reclaim Chozo technology has resulted in the hegemony declaring war against non-compliant species, the most recent instance being their war against the Chiss Ascendancy and the Citadel Council.

 **Technology**

The technology employed by the Covenant is some of the most advanced used by any currently living sapient species, far surpassing that of which is used by either the Chiss or the "big three" races of the Citadel Council. It has very recognizable curved, organic and sophisticated-looking style ranging in colors like purple, white and blue, primarily based on the aesthetic tastes of the San 'Shyuum with a loose connection of Sangheili designs. This style is seen in Covenant architecture and the design of their ships and ground vehicles. The materials used are unknown, but quite strong and resilient, able to hold its own both _charric_ energy and mass accelerators.

However, much like the races of the Citadel, the Covenant's technology borrows more from ancient civilizations, in this case, the Chozo. Covenant tech is largely reverse-engineered from artifacts left by the precursor race, including exceedingly accurate slipspace navigation, near-instantaneous interstellar communication, the manipulation of extremely high volumes of plasma energy from sublight travel, short-range translocation of matter, a great influence over gravity and repulsor-based technologies, and man-portable application of energy manipulation.

Although innovation is not one of the Covenant's strong suits, the Covenant has shown considerable advancement in bridging the technological gap with newly-encountered species. For example, in the first encounter of the Intergalactic War, the Covenant learned of the Chiss' computer systems and of its language from salvaging Chiss computer and network components from destroyed ships. This knowledge benefited the Covenant greatly in understanding the Ascendancy's military operation.

The reverse engineering of Chozo technology also made interstellar travel quite easy for the Covenant. Like the Chiss and the Quarians, the Covenant uses slipspace as their method of FTL. However, the Covenant's slipspace drive is much more efficient and reliable, capable of reaching destinations in a shorter time frame than the Chiss. Their starships use repulsor engines for propulsion in space, and they are equipped with various forms of anti-gravity technology that allow them to hover within an atmosphere. This anti-gravity technology is also used for Covenant ground vehicles.

There are some instances, though, where it seems that the Covenant have not fully explored all of what the Chozo employed to create their technology. In some cases, such as their plasma weaponry, Covenant technology imitates the effects of the Chozo technology it is based

On the subject of their plasma weapons, the Covenant arsenal is filled with it. While plasma-based directed energy is the main of the Covenant arsenal, they are also known to utilize pulse lasers, particle beam weapons, antimatter explosives and even chemical crystal-based weapons. Interestingly, Covenant weapon designs seem to defy known laws of mechanics; there is typically no form of radiative, physical, or electrical contact between the firing mechanism and "trigger" of a weapon. For these and other reasons, the workings of Covenant weaponry is generally beyond the comprehension of scientists from other species.

Plasma weapons typically use a rechargeable power cell to provide power to their internal components. Covenant plasma weapons are effective but crude, and most automatic-fire plasma weapons are prone to overheating. To compensate, most weapons have vents that open to discharge excess heat and plasma when they overheat, although such weapons are rendered inoperable as the excess heat is dissipated. Once the energy of the plasma weapon is depleted, it must be recharged or discarded. To date, the means by which plasma weapons can be recharged is still unknown to Chiss and Council forces, though the former and the Salarians are working hard to figure this out and hopefully emulate it.

Though rarer, the Covenant have also been seen using projectile weapons, the most common being a type of unconventional, crystal-based weapon. This weapon, nicknamed the "Needler" by the Chiss, uses the chemical crystal-based system mentioned earlier. It fires hard, razor-sharp crystals formed from some unknown type of chemical. These crystals detonate seconds after impacting with a target, and through unknown means, actively _seek out_ organic targets upon being fired.

The Covenant also employs melee weapons in its arsenal, including the infamous energy sword, a blade of superheated plasma used mostly by the Sangheili and occasionally the Kig-Yar and Jiralhanae. The Jiralhanae's introduction to the Covenant caste system introduced a larger number of melee weapons, which were commonplace in Jiralhanae culture, the most famous being the gravity hammer. Rather than being a blade of plasma, the hammer generates a gravitational field which can cause tremendous damage within a several-meter radius.

* * *

 **God this one took forever to write. Next up with be the Covenant fringe races, and will be much shorter. Council races after that, though I'm still unsure whether I should do a whole page centered around them, or do individual pages for each Council species, considering their culture is much more diverse than that of the Covenant. Also, the inclusion of the Raloi was something I came up with recently. Figured some of the more obscure races could use a tiny bit more limelight.**

 **To close this off, I will reiterate this one last time: in this fic, the Chozo and the Forerunners are one in the same. It is still the same Forerunners from Halo canon, just called the Chozo. The title "Forerunners" is a label largely used by the Covenant, similar to how the Hanar call the Protheans "Enkindlers". I won't be changing it, so please, no more commenting on it. Thank you, and have a nice day.**


End file.
